The Blue Jays’ Bo Bichette is just getting started at the plate

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This article was published 26/05/2021 (1633 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

From the outside looking in, Bo Bichette has appeared to be one of the Blue Jays’ most consistent performers. When Marcus Semien got off to a slow start and Teoscar Hernandez was out with COVID-19, it was Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. who maintained steady hands.

Once Semien started to heat up and Hernandez returned, Bichette was still out there every day doing his thing. By most accounts, it has been a strong two months in what will probably end up being another productive season. Yet, the 23-year-old, who serves as his own biggest critic, isn’t close to being satisfied.

Bichette expects more out of himself than the .270 average, with nine homers and 27 RBIs, he has posted across 47 games. He was a .300-plus hitter during the first 75 games of his career and the former second-round pick intends on being one again, but even that might not be enough to satisfy his inner drive.

“A lot of things need to get better,” Bichette said Wednesday afternoon before the Jays’ game against the Yankees was postponed because of rain. “I feel like I’ve been really inconsistent this year.

“I feel like I’ve been inconsistent because I haven’t felt great in the box. I’m proud of the way that I’ve competed. Every day I’m just going up there and trying to compete and get a good pitch and see what happens.”

That quote will be music to his dad’s ears because it’s the kind of philosophy he preached as a hitting coach, first with the Colorado Rockies and later with the Jays. The way Dante Bichette sees it, everyone who makes it to the big leagues — even those who bat around .200 — will have two or three weeks where the ball looks as big as a basketball and they hit everything in sight.

Those same players will also go through a two-week stretch when the ball seems to disappear entirely. According to the elder Bichette, the bridge between those two gaps is when players put in their best work. Getting results when everything doesn’t feel quite right is what separates the stars from the replacement level players.

“You’re grinding out two-strike modes, hunting a pitch, getting a cheap hit somehow — surviving until you get to your hot streak,” Dante Bichette, a four-time all-star during the 1990s, previously told The Star. “That’s when you have to do your best hitting and that’s what will make or break your year.”

The younger Bichette appears to be going through that now. The native of Florida has yet to put together a stretch like he did as a rookie when he hit .341 with a 1.091 OPS across his first 21 games, but he hasn’t gone into a prolonged slump either. The longest Bichette has gone without a hit this season is four games, his longest stretch of not reaching base is two games.

Add it all up and you have a player who ranks third on the team with 1.3 wins above replacement, per Fangraphs. The AL leader with 39 runs also has an OPS+ that is 16 points above average and a respectable .318 OBP. Strong numbers, but ones that are still down from his career norm. Once that hot streak rolls around, and it will come, those numbers should soar.

“I feel like I’ve just been a little bit off,” said Bichette, who made these comments despite having four hits over his last three games. “When you’re not feeling good in the box, a lot of times you can think about that you’re not feeling good in the box. I think I’ve done a pretty good job of separating the two.

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“There have been times when I’ve thought about it, and those times I haven’t played very well. But I think for the most part I’ve separated the two, competed. I think the consistency is coming. I think I’m way more consistent now than I was earlier in the year. So, as long as that keeps on improving, I think I’ll be in a good spot.”

Bichette might still be waiting to take off, but the man he advanced through the minors with certainly isn’t. The 22-year-old Guerrero has been mashing everything in sight. He entered Wednesday night’s games leading all major-leaguers in fWAR (3.0) and OPS (1.121), and he was tied for first at 16 home runs with Texas Rangers outfielder Adolis Garcia. Only one Blue Jays player has ever reached base more than Guerrero has at this point of the season. John Olerud reached base 93 times — compared to Guerrero’s 92 — in the 1993 season when he flirted with batting .400.

“This is something I think all of us knew he was capable of,” said Bichette, whose team will be making up for Wednesday’s postponement with a doubleheader against the Yankees on Thursday. “So, it’s not really that surprising, honestly. But he’s fun to watch. He can do something special every time he goes up there. So, I’m definitely glad he’s on our team.”

Guerrero’s breakout was predictable to Bichette, and it shouldn’t catch any of us off guard when Bichette goes on a run of his own. The numbers look pretty good right now, but once he starts heating up and feeling comfortable in the box, they’re going to look a whole lot better.

Gregor Chisholm is a Toronto-based baseball columnist for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: @GregorChisholm or reach him via email: gchisholm@thestar.ca