Why the Blue Jays might have to go outside their comfort zone to re-sign Bo Bichette

"The Toronto Blue Jays' front office is notoriously firm in its valuations of players when pursuing free agents and exploring contract extensions. President Mark Shapiro and general manager Ross Atkins stick to their assessments of what players are worth throughout the negotiating process, and their discipline has paid off on many occasions. However, not every negotiation can be won with pragmatism. Sometimes front offices need to be emotional and push themselves to uncomfortable places to secure the long-term services of a true difference maker."

"Nobody is pretending Bichette is the same calibre of player as Ohtani or Soto, who inked the two biggest contracts in baseball history. Ohtani just won his fourth MVP award, while Soto's career .417 on-base percentage leads all active hitters. They're both headed for Cooperstown as first ballot Hall of Famers. While Bichette is not on their level, he's a fantastic player in his own right and a homegrown star beloved by an entire country."

"Bichette bounced back from an injury-plagued campaign to hit .311/.357/.483 with a team-leading 94 RBIs in 139 games for the Blue Jays in 2025. He missed the final three weeks of the regular season due to a knee injury, yet still finished second in MLB with 181 hits, just three behind Bobby Witt Jr., despite playing in 18 fewer games. The 27-year-old shortstop owns a .806 OPS (121 OPS+) for his career and accrued 3.8 fWAR for the fourth time in the last five years."

The Blue Jays front office is typically disciplined and sticks to firm player valuations during negotiations, but some negotiations require emotional risk-taking. Examples include the unprecedented approaches used to sign Shohei Ohtani and Juan Soto. Bo Bichette, a 27-year-old homegrown shortstop, posted strong 2025 numbers (.311/.357/.483, 94 RBIs, 181 hits) despite a knee injury and has a career .806 OPS (121 OPS+) with repeated 3.8 fWAR seasons. Bichette returned in the World Series and delivered key run production despite limited mobility. The front office should consider pursuing a long-term commitment to secure his services.

Read at BlueJaysNation