Blue Jays’ Top All-Star Sends 1-Word Bo Bichette Message After Setback

Jul 30, 2026 05:00 PM - 2 hours ago 3

World Series - Los Angeles Dodgers v Toronto Blue Jays - Game 6

The Toronto Blue Jays entered 2026 pinch expectations of building connected past season's success, but alternatively the nine has watched its playoff hopes vanish arsenic it seemed immoderate intangible value from past year’s Cinderella nine was lost.

With Toronto preparing to waste astatine the upcoming waste and acquisition deadline, attraction has people shifted to what went incorrect this year. And pinch the wide talent of the squad evidently balanced aliases moreover upgraded past year, blasted has shifted to a deficiency of clubhouse camaraderie for the harsh measurement back.

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Toronto Blue Jays All-Star Leader Ernie Clement Sends Bo Bichette Message

One of the fewer cardinal players from past play to return a measurement up this twelvemonth has been 2nd baseman Ernie Clement, who led all of the American League successful All-Star votes this season.

When asked if erstwhile cardinal clubhouse fig Bo Bichette was a cardinal characteristic for the team’s personality past year, Clement offered a clear one-word response.

“Definitely,” Clement said, according to the Toronto Star’s Mike Wilner.

Though Bichette was replaced pinch seasoned Japanese prima Kazuma Okamoto connected the roster, Clement acknowledged that the clubhouse has not felt the aforesaid without him aliases chap seasoned teammate Chris Bassitt, who joined the Baltimore Orioles successful free agency.

“(Chris Bassitt) and Bo are 2 guys who had been around,” Clement added, per Wilner. “They knew really to win. Any clubhouse wants guys for illustration that and misses guys for illustration that.’”

The comments travel arsenic Toronto continues searching for answers during a play that has fallen good short of expectations.

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Though the Blue Jays replaced Bichette and Bassitt pinch a number of prima additions successful the winter, accordant injuries and an evident deficiency of on-field “magic” person intelligibly taken their toll this season.

“There’s nary magic successful the 2026 Jays, pinch the squad stuck successful neutral — aliases worse, successful reverse — for the amended portion of what’s been an highly disappointing season,” Wilner wrote. “The occurrence of past twelvemonth is conscionable a representation arsenic the Jays person tumbled to past place, group to beryllium sellers astatine the waste and acquisition deadline for the 2nd clip successful 3 seasons.”

But Bichette hasn’t been faring immoderate amended this play either. After a prolonged slump to commencement the play pinch the New York Mets, he has been better, but his caller squad is good retired of the playoff title and headed toward trading arsenic well.

“I can’t do thing astir those first 2 months,” Bichette precocious told the New York Post’s Mike Puma. “I wish I had gotten disconnected to the amended commencement and who knows if the play would person gone otherwise not conscionable for me, but for the squad arsenic a whole. I can’t do thing astir it.”

For Toronto, Clement’s candid appraisal serves arsenic different reminder that replacing accumulation is only portion of the challenge. Veteran activity and clubhouse chemistry are overmuch harder to quantify, and arsenic the Blue Jays hole for different deadline sell-off, the absence of players for illustration Bichette and Bassitt appears to beryllium felt good beyond the container score.