An early September knee injury sidelined Bo Bichette for the stretch run at the end of the regular season. After the Toronto Blue Jays won the AL East and secured a first-round bye as the No. 1 seed, Bichette was still not healthy enough to play. Toronto left him off the ALDS and ALCS rosters. But after being sidelined nearly seven weeks, Bichette made the World Series roster and will start in Game 1 Friday.
The veteran shortstop bounced back with a strong season in the final year of his contract. Bichette becomes an unrestricted free agent in 2026. But he’d prefer to continue playing in Toronto. “My goal is to stay here for my entire career,” Bichette said, per SportsNet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith. However, he’s currently focused on helping the Blue Jays win their first championship in 32 years.
Bo Bichette bolsters Blue Jays’ World Series lineup
Bichette will play second base and bat cleanup for the Blue Jays in the World Series opener Friday. It will be his first game action since spraining his left knee on September 6. It will also be his first Major League start at second, a position he played just once in Triple-A.
The two-time All-Star is a welcome addition to the roster as Toronto prepares to face the juggernaut Dodgers. It will be just the seventh postseason game of his seven-year career. But the Blue Jays could use Bichette’s bat in the lineup.
The team primarily used Alejandro Kirk as the cleanup hitter in the postseason. The veteran catcher provided some pop for Toronto, hitting three homers and driving in seven runs in 11 playoff games. However he hit .222 with a .286 on-base percentage.
Bichette had been batting fourth prior to his regular-season-ending injury. He slashed .311/.357/.483 with 18 home runs and 94 RBI in 139 games, rebounding nicely from an injury-plagued 2024 campaign in the final year of his $33.6 million extension.
Bichette will take over as the cleanup hitter when the Blue Jays face Blake Snell in Game 1 of the World Series. For now, he’ll put his impending free agency on hold as Toronto contends with the Dodgers' historically dominant starting rotation.
