"I don't think you win a championship with Oneil Cruz at SS" - MLB analyst lauds Pirates' decision, suggests Blue Jays follow suit with Bo Bichette

MLB analysts Jeff Blair, Kevin Barker and Dan O'Dowd of the MLB Network, talked about Bo Bichette's contract situation with the Toronto Blue Jays. They discussed Oneil Cruz's shift in position from shortstop to center field on 29th August's episode of "Blair and Barker."

Bo Bichette has had a frustrating 2024 season, struggling for consistency while being plagued by injury. The 26-year-old is currently out of action with a right calf injury. With Bo Bichette only having one year left on his Blue Jays contract, O'Dowd talked about what the next course of action could be (1:03:03):

"Bo's a great player in my mind, when Bo is having fun and engaged in playing the game for something bigger than himself. That part of it, somewhere, got lost here in Toronto. I think this kid's a highly competitive kid, I think he's going to find his way back to being a performer.

But, to be a great player, and be a championship player, you gotta love where you're playing and you gotta love the players around you, I think those are bigger concerns than his injuries."

Dan also talked about why a satisfactory solution might be hard to find, due to a possible lack of rapport between the player and the management, drawing a parallel with the Pitssburgh Pirates' latest position switch of Oneil Cruz (1:04:46):

" I don't think it can happen if you haven't built any kind of authentic relationship with the player. It's like what Pittsburgh's going through right now with Oneil Cruz. If you've created that kind of relationship, you can have any kind of conversation you want with him, because he knows you just want what's best for the team."

Further, Dan explained the logic behind Oneil's recent move from shortstop to center field (1:05:48):

"I don't think he is a shortstop. I think he can play the position, but I don't think you're gonna win a championship with him at the position. I do think he can make a transition to the outfield."

Blue Jays look to split series in Boston; Bo Bichette progressing towards return

The Toronto Blue Jays were shutout at Fenway Park on Wednesday, as they stumbled to a 3-0 loss to the Boston Red Sox. Both starting pitchers Brayan Bello (Red Sox) and Chris Bassitt (Blue Jays) registered quality starts, as an early run in the bottom of the first followed by a Tyler O'Neill two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth were the only runs scored in the game.

Houston Astros v Toronto Blue Jays - Source: Getty

The Blue Jays also received positive updates on Bo Bichette's return. After suffering a calf injury against the Detroit Tigers in late July, the 26-year-old had only been performing hitting and fielding exercises. He has also added running drills with hopes of making a return in coming weeks.

After winning the opening encounter of the four-game series, the Blue Jays lost successive games, and will be hoping to split the series with a win in the series finale on Friday.