Navarro looks to return Friday

At least Dioner Navarro knew what hit him Saturday night.

"I remember calling a fastball inside and that's it," the catcher said Sunday morning, about 12 hours after being released from a hospital.

Aside from some soreness on the left side of his face that made it feel "like somebody punched me in the jaw," Navarro was fine after taking a redirected Grant Balfour pitch squarely in the mask in the seventh inning the night before. No concussion, no broken bones.

"I was feeling fine, I was feeling OK, I was like, 'Give me time, let me recuperate,' and then all of a sudden I felt nauseous and I was dizzy and tingly in my head," Navarro said. "But they did a pretty good job in the hospital and I'm fine. A little sore there but that's about it."

Navarro was at Tropicana Field on Sunday but wasn't going to play under any circumstances. Michel Hernandez got the start, and John Jaso was called up from Durham to serve as the backup when Balfour went on the bereavement list.

But the good news was the Rays expect Navarro to be fine by the time the second-half schedule opens Friday in Kansas City, so a trip to the disabled list shouldn't be necessary.

"Thank God we've got the All-Star break," Navarro said. "I've got those four days to see what happens."

Long trip home

Balfour embarked upon perhaps the most difficult trip ever attempted during an All-Star break, flying home to Australia for his grandfather's funeral. The reliever is expected to be back and ready Friday in Kansas City after a long journey in both directions.

Maddon said Balfour had to fly to Denver and then Los Angeles before a 14-hour flight to Australia, with a similarly grueling schedule on the way back.

"We knew about this, so he needed to get out of here by today in order to go all that way and get back in time," Maddon said. "It's unfortunate."

The Rays likely will keep Jaso on their roster the next few days as insurance in case something unexpected happens with Navarro or Balfour that keeps them from Friday's game.

Odds and ends

Longtime Rays bullpen catcher Scott Cursi said Major League Baseball has told him there's a chance he'll catch a portion of tonight's Home Run Derby in St. Louis. ... Ben Zobrist made his first start in right field since May 26 and made an immediate impact, throwing out Orlando Cabrera at the plate to end the first inning after the veteran attempted to tag up and score from third. ... C Shawn Riggans (shoulder tendinitis) will begin a rehab assignment with Port Charlotte today. ... Durham OF Justin Ruggiano was taken for X-rays Sunday after being hit in the hand with a fastball.

Marc Lancaster