"He probably wants to be better": Blue Jays' Shapiro on struggling Bichette

Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette definitely hasn’t had the sort of season he envisioned in 2022.

Bichette has suited up for 127 of 129 games this season and is tied for second in the Major Leagues with 519 at bats this season.

But despite having more opportunities to succeed than just about anyone, Bichette sits just 14th on the roster with 1.1 wins above the replacement mark this season, hardly the confidence boost from a player long deemed a key member of the Jays’ core.

“I mean, I think no one’s as hard on Bo as Bo is on himself,” Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro said on a Fan 590 radio appearance Wednesday with Blair & Barker. “That’s the answer I can give. That’s probably one of the things that he’s going to have to figure out how to handle over a career — is that he’s so driven to be an elite player, he’s so driven to be great that he’s never satisfied with his effort, he’s never satisfied with the outcomes.”

Coming off his first career All-Star appearance a season ago, Bichette’s had arguably his worst major league season since first being called up in 2019. His batting average (.260) on base percentage (.305) and slugging percentage (.420) are all at the lowest of his career, while he’s striking out in 26% of his at bats (135-519) compared to 21% a year ago (137-640).

Shapiro, though, backs the 24-year-old Bichette to eventually turn things around due to his dedication to the game.

“Just, to me, that athleticism, his knowledge and love of the game, and that drive, are a good bet over time, but I would say that he probably wants to be better. But I’m not sure he’ll ever not want to be better than what he is,” he said.

Shapiro was asked about the long-term consistency of Bichette as well as star slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who has hit a team-high 27 home runs but, including team-high-21 times where he grounded into double plays.

“You talk about the decades of baseball I’ve watched, and development is not linear,” Shapiro added. “It’s not that steady lineup. The beauty of young players is you often have the upside of incredible performances, but you also get some downside with that. What you hope is that over time that they’re having a very gradual line up, you know, if you connect the dots from those ups and downs.”

While Bichette can’t exactly shrug off the tough season he’s had, there’s no better time to start playing better than right now.

The Blue Jays are off today, before a visit to the Pittsburgh Pirates at 6:35 pm ET tomorrow.

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