TAMPA — Bo Bichette‘s regular season is over, John Schneider said Tuesday, and all eyes now shift to October.
There’s still no hard timeline for Bichette’s return from a sprained PCL in his left knee, though, and won’t be until Bichette begins to ramp up his running, hitting and defensive work, which isn’t happening just yet.
Thankfully, the Blue Jays have built enough of a cushion to be patient, at least down the stretch in the regular season. Tuesday’s 6-5 win over the Rays, their sixth in a row, keeps the Blue Jays 5 1/2 games up on the Yankees (who were yet to finish against the Twins at final out) in the AL East. They could celebrate a postseason clinch as soon as Thursday, too, and Bichette has been a huge part of these champagne dates coming early for the 89-62 Blue Jays, the best record in the American League.
This news comes just as Bichette returns from getting a second opinion on his left knee from a specialist in Dallas on Monday. Along with double-checking the diagnosis, Bichette and the Blue Jays wanted to look ahead on this injury to make sure that his eventual rehab would come without any additional risks or stumbling blocks.
“It confirmed what the first [diagnosis] was, which is just a sprain to his knee and nothing further required,” Schneider said. “It’s rest and rehab, then getting back as soon as he can.”
It’s extremely likely that the Blue Jays will claim one of the top two spots in the American League and earn a bye right to the American League Division Series, which begins Oct. 4. That’s 18 days from Tuesday, giving Bichette a couple of weeks to work through his rehab and some extra cushion to face live pitching, if he’s close enough to being ready. The Blue Jays would love to have Bichette back at 100%, but if they can only get his bat back, they’ll take it.
It still feels like we’re a week away from a more meaningful update to Bichette’s potential timeline, which isn’t expected to come until he’s back on the field and going through drills. Bichette is incredibly competitive and entering the final days of his contract with the Blue Jays before hitting free agency, so he’ll be as motivated as anyone possibly could be, but his body will need to cooperate first.
In the meantime, the Blue Jays will hope for the best while preparing for anything else. Their path to winning the American League East and clinching home field through the ALCS is wide open, so these final 12 games will be used to position themselves for the postseason, whether that’s with or without their star shortstop.
Defense: Andrés Giménez in the spotlight
Andrés Giménez has now started the last five games at shortstop and what a glimpse it’s been. Monday night in Tampa, Giménez made a handful of standout defensive plays and looks just as comfortable there as he does at second base, where he’s been a perennial Gold Glove Award candidate.
“This is just me watching, but he looks a little more engaged and it’s carrying over to his at-bats a little bit,” Schneider said. “You’re kind of the quarterback of the defense. He’s taken a step forward. We talked through it with him and made sure he was comfortable with it, which he was after just a day or two of ground balls.”
If Bichette returns defensively, then the Blue Jays will slide Giménez right back over. It’s also been obvious since the day he was acquired from the Guardians that Giménez could be the Blue Jays’ long-term option at shortstop beyond Bichette if he signs elsewhere this offseason, but that’s a worry for another day. No matter where you stick Giménez, he’s going to end up on a highlight reel.
“I think he’s the best infielder in Major League Baseball, no matter where you put him,” Schneider said.
Offense: The group effort
There’s no replacing Bichette offensively. Since the start of July, he’d been hitting .372 with a .996 OPS, driving opposing pitchers crazy with his stubborn at-bats and the ability to foul off as many pitches as he pleases.
There will be days when Vladimir Guerrero Jr., George Springer or another Blue Jays star will take over a game entirely, but on the other days, the Blue Jays need the whole band in sync.
“When he went on the IL, everyone was asking who was going to step up and it has to be everyone,” Schneider said. “It’s about everyone doing their part and not trying to do something they’re not good at. I know I sound like a broken record, but that’s kind of what’s gotten us to this point. It’s about not saying, ‘Woe is me. We lost Bo. He’s got 90-something RBIs.’ It’s about what you can do today to help.”
Otherwise, all the Blue Jays can do is wait. In a season where everything seems to have gone right for this team, though, they’re holding out hope for one more.
