DUNEDIN, Fla. — After a three-hit afternoon against the Red Sox Thursday, Bo Bichette said he likes hitting from the leadoff spot and is open to starting the season there if the Toronto Blue Jays’ decision-makers are equally intrigued.
“Yeah, it does excite me,” Bichette said. “I’ve spent some time there and always enjoyed my time there. I take it as a challenge to kind of set the tone for the team, and I like challenges, so hopefully, I get that opportunity.”
Bichette understands that the likes of George Springer, Will Wagner and Andres Gimenez could also spend time atop the order depending on the situation, but in his conversations with manager John Schneider, the two-time all-star has made it clear he’d be comfortable hitting first.
“I have, but I also made it known I’m up for whatever spot,” he said.
Because Springer has been the Blue Jays’ primary leadoff hitter for the last four seasons, Bichette has rarely hit first, with just nine career starts in the leadoff spot. One way or another, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Anthony Santander are likely to hit 2-3 or 3-4, with Gimenez likely hitting before Alejandro Kirk further down as a way to maximize the second baseman’s stolen base ability.
Of course, whichever batting order the Blue Jays select to start the year, they’re likely to tinker as they go. Last year, for instance, Schneider used 152 different lineups in the course of 162 games, so the days of a set lineup are effectively over as managers seek the best possible matchups every day.
Under those circumstances, it’s perhaps no surprise that Schneider wasn’t making any commitments about where Bichette would hit. Asked whether the shortstop has taken to the leadoff spot, Schneider declined to get overly specific.
“I think Bo’s taken to hitting, which is really, really refreshing for us,” Schneider said. “He’s done that before we acquired George. He’s comfortable doing it. He’s comfortable anywhere. I just want him to continue to swing the bat. The way he’s swinging, it’s going to be such a breath of fresh air for our lineup. And not really having him last year or what he was expecting out of himself. So wherever he is, I got all the confidence in the world in him.”
Most importantly, Bichette says he feels good physically after a season in which injuries limited him to just 81 games and an uncharacteristically low .598 OPS. As the 27-year-old enters his final season before free agency, he feels more like his usual self — the player with a lifetime .290 batting average and 119 OPS+.
“I’m playing free,” Bichette said. “I’ve been enjoying it and I feel good.”
And regardless of which order the Blue Jays hit in, Bichette has been encouraged by the tone of conversations around Blue Jays camp following a difficult 2024 season in which the team went 74-88 on the way to a last-place finish in the American League East.
“All they talk about is winning, so that’s music to my ears,” Bichette said. “We have a bunch of competitors and a bunch of winners in the clubhouse. The goal is to go out there every day and compete and try to win, and we believe we can do that.”
