Kirk catapulted Toronto ahead for good with a no-doubter to right-center field against Rays starter Ryan Pepiot in the sixth inning. It was his third big fly of the season. The 26-year-old backstop made an immediate impact in his return to the lineup following a one-game absence after being hit in the head by a backswing over the weekend.

Kirk is back at catcher and batting sixth after sitting out Tuesday’s series opener for some extra rest and recovery. The 26-year-old backstop passed all concussion-related tests after being hit in the helmet on a backswing over the weekend.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider told reporters that Kirk has passed all concussion tests was lifted from Sunday’s game after being hit in the helmet on a backswing, which is an extremely encouraging development. He’ll get some extra time off to rest and recover out of an abundance of caution. It’ll be Tyler Heineman handling the catching duties on Tuesday night in his absence.

Kirk finished out the inning, but it sounds like after consulting with the training staff the Jays decided to take the cautious approach and give him the rest of the afternoon off. He’ll presumably be put through the concussion protocol just to make sure that he checks all the boxes before returning to action. Tyler Heineman replaced him behind the dish on Sunday and would be in line for more action if Kirk is forced to miss any additional time.