Concerns About Blue Jays Star Slugger’s Lack of Power Have Been Unjustified
In this story:
There have been a lot of contributing factors to the Toronto Blue Jays struggling to consistently produce runs this season.
Their major offseason additions, second baseman Andres Gimenez and right fielder Anthony Santander, have not made as much of an impact as hoped. Both are failing to replicate previous production at the plate.
Another player who people are concerned about is shortstop Bo Bichette, who is entering a potential walk year, set to be a free agent after the campaign.
The thing people are most concerned about is his power seemingly disappearing at the plate.
Throughout his last 122 games, he has hit only seven home runs. Two of them have come in his last three games, as he hit long balls against the Tampa Bay Rays on May 13 and the Seattle Mariners on May 10.
Bichette has looked a lot better at the plate this year after struggling through injuries in 2024. His slash line of .286/.337/.411 is a massive improvement over the .225/.277/.322 he produced last year.
Will Bo Bichette Regain His Power Stroke This Season?
He is also hitting the ball hard with regularity, owning an average exit velocity of 90.9 mph and a hard-hit rate of 47.9%, per Baseball Reference.
All of those numbers are more closely in line with what he was producing when he was named an All-Star twice and appeared on the MVP ballot from 2021-2023.
And the power stroke he showed during that time should return based on some underlying statistics that paint a much nicer picture than his raw numbers do.
“Bichette’s 2025 expected slugging percentage of .500 is 31 points above his career average and right in line with the .502 mark he put up in 2023, before the calf and hand injuries…but the power has been quietly there all season. The shortstop is on pace for a career high in doubles (48) and has his highest hard-hit rate since his rookie campaign (46.9 percent). As long as Bichette stays healthy, there’s little reason to worry about his pop,” wrote Mitch Bannon of The Athletic (subscription required).
The more concerning aspect of Bichette’s game that people should be keeping an eye on is his defense.
He has gone from serviceable, a little below average to one of the worst defenders in the sport. His Fielding Run Value of -4 is in the third percentile and he has a just as ugly -5 Outs Above Average number, which is in the first percentile.
