Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette has retaken his place as one of the premier hitters in Major League Baseball during the 2025 campaign.

The 27-year-old struggled last season, slashing .225/.277/.322 in 81 games during a season that was marred by injuries.

Bichette has rebounded this year by leading the majors in hits (177), doubles (42) and is third in MLB with a .310 batting average.

The two-time all-star has taken his game to another level heading into Wednesday action, with hits in 16 in his past 17 games and has .426 batting average with two home runs and 13 RBI during that stretch.

Bichette's clutch play couldn't have come at a better time for the Blue Jays as they sit only 2.5 games ahead of the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox for top spot in the American League East with 23 games remaining in the regular season.

But it’s also happening at a perfect time for Bichette, who is looking to prove that he is a prime-time player as he is set to enter unrestricted free agency at the end of the season.

"He's setting himself up in a big way because he's reminding us that when he gets on one of those heaters, there's nothing he can't hit and will be one of the most productive guys on any team's lineup," ESPN's Buster Olney told TSN1050's First Up on Wednesday. "Early in the season, we were asking what his free agency would look like and how teams look at him and it was fairly stark. He wasn't someone who was going to impress people when he gets to the open market in the fall."

Despite all of his offensive success this season, questions remain about Bichette’s defence and his ability to play the shortstop position at a high level. 

Bichette is considered one of the worst defenders at his position this season with a .971 fielding percentage and a -0.5 defensive wins above replacement rating.

Olney believes that this will lead to teams to be wary of him in the shortstop position and will lead to conversations with Bichette on his willingness to move away from the position when he becomes a free agent.

"Teams are looking at him in some other spot other than a shortstop," said Olney. "I don't know how Bo feels about that, but some of the front office people say he has to change positions. Typically, you get paid better as a shortstop rather than a second baseman, [but] I think there will be some team that will take a shot at him and pay.

The Blue Jays have lived with all the positives and negatives of Bichette's seven-season MLB career, which Olney thinks could put them in an awkward position if they would like him to move away from shortstop.

He believes Bichette might be less receptive to the idea coming from the Blue Jays as opposed to the idea being sold to him away from Toronto.

"It's a lot like when Marcus Semien had that great season in Toronto [in 2021] and he hit the open market," said Olney. "The Texas Rangers came to him and told him that the envision him and Corey Seager up the middle and, in that case, Semien wound up changing positions. I think it would be really hard [for the Blue Jays] to tell Bichette that they want to keep him, but he would have to change spots than it would for another team."

Pitching changes day to day

The Blue Jays' relief pitching has been a point of contention over the past week, after late-inning losses to the Minnesota Twins, Milwaukee Brewers, and Cincinnati Reds.

Closer Jeff Hoffman has been at the centre of their struggles, going 2-2 with a 5.54 earned-run average with a 2-2 record and three blown saves since the beginning of August.

The 6-foot-5 righty is in his first season with the Blue Jays, despite being drafted by the team in 2014, and has an 8-6 record with a 4.94 ERA with 30 saves in his first season as a full-time closer.

Hoffman was able to close out the Reds on Tuesday in a game that saw the team survive with an 12-9 win, despite going up 8-1 in the second inning.

"[Pitching] changes day to day and bullpens change day to day," said Olney. "Hoffman was the conversation last night at the end of that steel cage match with the Reds. He was able to paint the outside corner with 97 MPH fastballs, while [trade deadline pickup] Louis Varland had a second really good outing. So stuff changes quickly."

To go along with the bullpen concerns, starting pitcher Jose Berrios has been struggling down the stretch while Max Scherzer allowed four earned runs on nine hits in four innings and left early due to back tightness against the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday.

Despite that, Olney believes the acquisition of Shane Bieber from the Cleveland Guardians at the trade deadline and Scherzer's experience still puts the Blue Jays in a good spot.

"Bieber has a chance to be the best trade-deadline acquisition," said Olney. "Even though the Blue Jays lost on Friday night, he was outstanding early in that game, and you look at him being a guy who's clearly going to help them down the stretch. Scherzer is one of those guys who knows his body, so when he comes out and says he had stiffness in his upper back but he'll be fine and good to go, I take that at face value."