Bo Bichette left Friday’s sport as a consequence of a proper calf pressure, and it’s no shock that the Blue Jays have now positioned the shortstop on the 10-day injured listing. Infielder Addison Barger has been referred to as up from Triple-A to take Bichette’s spot on the lively roster.
Bichette broke out of the batter’s field after lining out to proper discipline on the finish of the sixth inning however instantly limped after just a few steps. Final night time’s damage was the newest prevalence in what has been a group of calf accidents for Bichette during the last month, as he spent a minimal 10-day stint on the IL with one other pressure to his proper calf in June. He additionally left Toronto’s sport on July 10 with what was described without any consideration calf fascia pressure, although with the All-Star break looming, the Jays opted to not place Bichette on the IL once more, hoping that the break day would enable him to heal up.
Sadly, Bichette once more finds himself sidelined, seemingly for properly past a 10-day minimal. Blue Jays supervisor John Schneider ought to quickly replace the media on the end result of Bichette’s MRI. But, even when the MRI was clear, the recurring nature of this calf damage most likely means the Jays shall be cautious in giving Bichette loads of time to beat this challenge totally. This virtually certainly implies that Bichette will nonetheless be on the injured listing when the commerce deadline hits on July 30, eliminating the likelihood that Toronto may half methods with the previous All-Star.
Although it isn’t extraordinary for groups to nonetheless make provides for injured gamers if an damage seems to be pretty minor in nature, two calf accidents for Bichette in a month’s time would seemingly give pause to any potential suitor. From the Jays’ perspective, they’re not going to simply accept a diminished commerce package deal for a participant who (if wholesome) is certainly one of their strongest commerce chips. Even because it appears to be like more and more obvious that Toronto shall be deadline sellers, the group is reportedly planning to contend in 2025, so their July 30 strikes is likely to be restricted to pending free brokers slightly than longer-term core items.
Even past Bichette’s accidents, his commerce worth has been lowered by an unexpectedly disastrous 2024 season. Bichette is hitting .222/.275/.320 with 4 house runs over 331 plate appearances, and his 69 wRC+ is the third-lowest amongst all certified hitters in baseball. Even when a low .266 BABIP and a giant hole between his wOBA (.264) and his xwOBA (.306) rely as some misfortune, Bichette’s energy numbers have cratered from his profession norms. His .098 Remoted Energy quantity is nearly half the .187 ISO he posted from 2019-23, and his historically robust barrels and barrel charges are each properly underneath the league common in 2024.
It is usually value noting that this isn’t solely a one-year development for Bichette. His robust 2023 season sputtered to an finish because of a pair of IL stints within the second half, as Bichette missed time to patellar tendinitis in his proper knee after which a proper quad pressure. Bichette’s first IL stint started on Aug. 1, 2023, and he hit solely .254/.292/.402 over his remaining 130 PA of the 2023 season.
With virtually a full 12 months of pattern measurement, it’s clear that Bichette merely hasn’t been proper since that preliminary bout of tendinitis final August, and it’s a further concern that every one of those accidents have come to his proper leg particularly. If Bichette is dealing with a reasonably prolonged (say, a month or so) keep on the injured listing anyway together with his newest calf downside, it isn’t out of the query that the Blue Jays would possibly simply shut him right down to get him prepared for 2025, for the reason that group received’t be in competition for the rest of this 12 months.
If the Jays’ subsequent two months develop into an information-gathering session for 2025, one silver lining to Bichette’s absence could possibly be extra taking part in time for Leo Jimenez at shortstop. Jimenez has hit and fielded properly in his small nine-game pattern measurement as a giant leaguer and will develop into a shortstop of the longer term if Bichette is traded sooner or later or if he leaves in free company following the 2025 season.
