TORONTO – Bo Bichette looked Friday for a punctuation mark on possibly the end of his Blue Jays tenure.
One win stood between the team and a World Series title. And then the star infielder could begin his free agency tour in style.
“It’s been an incredible journey,” Bichette said before the Blue Jays’ 3-1 loss to the Dodgers in Game 6 of the World Series at Rogers Center. “I obviously grew up here in so many different ways. It’s the only organization I know, but I don’t really look at the past. I have some pretty important things going for me right now.”
Bichette, who went 1-for-3 with a walk in Friday’s loss, returned to Toronto’s lineup for this series after missing six weeks with a left knee injury. Moved from shortstop to second base since his return, Bichette had contributed to a team that began playing within one win of the franchise’s first title since 1993. He entered the day with a .701 OPS over five games with three RBIs.
It follows a regular season in which the 27-year-old son of former All-Star outfielder Dante Bichette posted a .311/.357/.483 slash line with 18 home runs and 94 RBIs. He is considered the best shortstop heading into free agency.
Bichette could have easily sat out the World Series to protect his knee, but ultimately he couldn’t fathom the idea of missing the opportunity.
“There were a lot of people telling me to take care of myself,” Bichette said. “Even I had that mentality a little bit, but to get the opportunity to play in this series is a no-brainer.”
Blue Jays manager John Schneider has appreciated Bichette’s return to the lineup for both the player’s and the team’s benefit.
“It was difficult for him mentally and physically for a few weeks, until the end of the year, in the first few rounds. [of playoffs]Schneider said. ‘His mental toughness really showed. He’s matured a lot this year in terms of what he wants to do, how he wants to do it and who he wants to be in the clubhouse. I’m just really happy for him that he was able to return and stand on this stage and contribute the way he has.
Bichette paid respect to bench coach Don Mattingly, who played in the World Series in a Major League uniform this season for the first time in 36 years.
“He brings a lot of knowledge, experience and a drive to win,” Bichette said. “I think this means as much to him as it does to anyone in that clubhouse, that he has a chance to win a World Series right now. And then when you talk about calmness, he’s as calm as can be, and I think that rubs off on everyone, so he’s had a huge impact.”
Bichette has benefited from this opportunity in part because his father never played in the World Series during his fourteen-year career with the Angels, Brewers, Rockies, Reds and Red Sox.
“Your whole career, everyone has been saying that you don’t take winning for granted,” Bichette said. “But you have to learn that yourself. There have been a lot of moments where I thought we would win, but we didn’t. So to be here and learn from the past seasons, it’s special to be here. It’s something I will never take for granted.”
“I will also look around the clubhouse and see what we did well and learn as much as I can from what this group does on and off the field and see if we can do it again.”
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