Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette, somewhat miraculously, will not immediately be going on the injured list after suffering what appeared at the time to be a fairly serious knee ailment while running the bases against the Orioles on Monday night.
According to Blue Jays manager John Schneider, the two-time All-Star is day-to-day after an MRI revealed no significant structural damage. Schneider added that an eventual IL stint hasn’t been completely ruled out, but that Toronto will wait and see for a few days and let the swelling and inflammation subside before making any further decisions on that front.
General manager Ross Atkins later added a little more colour to Schneider’s update, noting some “inflammation in the patellar tendon.” Atkins added that Bichette will rest in the near-term as the team decides whether or not to move the star shortstop to the IL.
All things considered, however, it looks like this was best-case scenario for Bichette and the Blue Jays, especially considering the pain the former appeared to be in immediately following the play.
While attempting to decelerate as he trotted around first base after poking one into the right-field corner, Bichette abruptly put on the brakes, keeled over, and allowed Orioles infielder Jorge Mateo to tag him without putting up a fight. After limping and hobbling around for a few seconds, Bichette was immediately helped off and appeared to be in some serious discomfort as he headed toward his team’s dugout in front of a stunned-silent Rogers Centre crowd.
Santiago Espinal replaced Bichette at shortstop in the bottom of the fourth inning as the Blue Jays dropped the first of a critical four-game set with the Orioles.
With the waters surrounding Bichette’s condition muddy as Tuesday’s trade deadline approached, Toronto picked up some insurance for its superstar by acquiring glove-first shortstop Paul DeJong from the St. Louis Cardinals.
Bichette leads the American League with a .321 batting average and 144 hits after reaching base on an infield single in the first on Monday night. Bichette, who also topped the AL in knocks in 2021 and 2022, has 17 home runs and 59 RBI in 106 games this season.
Following that aforementioned 4-2 loss to Baltimore on Monday, the Blue Jays sit 6.5 games behind the Orioles for first in the AL East while holding the third and final wild-card spot in the American League heading into Tuesday’s action.
