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Blue Jays' Jackson flying to hospital between games to see premature son

Adam Laskaris
Adam Laskaris
|
Jul 27 2023, 8:20 pm
Blue Jays' Jackson flying to hospital between games to see premature son

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Jay Jackson is putting things in perspective on his days away from the ballpark.

With most of his teammates heading back to Toronto after a series in Los Angeles against the Dodgers, Jackson was visiting his fiancée Sam Bautista and his three children at a medical facility in Utah.

Jackson’s youngest son, JR, was born 15 weeks premature earlier this month and is currently spending time with his mother and siblings in Ogden, Utah.

“Another off day, another evening flight to make story time,” Bautista tweeted Thursday with a picture of Jackson reading from a book to his newborn son. “JR is trucking along, they’ve been able to start weaning a little on the ventilator and increase his feeds. Proud of these boys and quick shoutout to our oldest son for helping entertain our daughter this summer.”

“Baby boy decided to make an entrance into this world 14-15 weeks early but is currently stable in the NICU,” Jackson tweeted on July 7. “I want to thank the staff at Ogden Regional Medical Center for being amazing and helping make sure my family is safe throughout this whole process. A lot of praise for them and happy to say baby boy and mom are safe.”

Jackson, who has spent the majority of his career in the minors (as well as a series of stints in Japan), has put up a career-best 0.57 ERA at age 35 in 2023, his first year in Toronto. And if he was thinking of his flight home ahead of last night’s outing, he didn’t show it, as Jackson threw three strikeouts in 1.2 innings yesterday in an 8-1 victory over the Dodgers.

For now, it’s another Los Angeles team up next for the Blue Jays, as they host the Angels from Friday to Sunday at the Rogers Centre for a sold-out weekend series.

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