TORONTO — Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette was placed on the injured list with a right calf strain Saturday. It is the second time Bichette has been on the IL with the injury this season.
Bichette aggravated his calf during the sixth inning of Friday’s loss against the Detroit Tigers while running out of the batter’s box. He went for an MRI on Saturday and the team is awaiting the results.
“When we get the results back, we’ll know the timeframe and things like that,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said.
The Blue Jays recalled utility infielder Addison Barger from Triple-A Buffalo to take Bichette’s place on the roster. Ernie Clement and Leo Jiménez are expected to get the bulk of work at shortstop with Bichette out.
This is the second time Bichette has hit the IL with a right calf strain within the span of a little over a month. The 26-year-old missed nine games from June 15-24 while on the IL. He missed an additional four games before the All-Star break after reaggravating the injury. The club had hoped the All-Star break had provided enough time for Bichette to rest and recover, but in the team’s first game back, the injury struck again.
The right leg has been a trouble spot for Bichette in recent years. In addition to his right calf, Bichette also suffered injuries to his right knee and quad last season.
“I think knee is a little bit different than soft tissue, but for a guy that plays all the time, you don’t like it to be the same thing over and over,” the Blue Jays manager said.
The injury is another blow to what’s been a tough season for Bichette, who has been slumping at the plate for the majority of the year. His .223 batting average and .597 OPS are well below his career norms and he’s hit only four home runs in 79 games this season.
Bichette’s surprising slowed production is among the reasons the Blue Jays find themselves well outside the American League playoff picture and are projected to be sellers at the MLB trade deadline on July 30.
While Bichette, who is under team control through 2025, has been mentioned in trade speculation, this latest injury should shut down that possibility, and it was remote to begin with.
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