Longtime Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette repeatedly said during the 2025 season that he wanted to be back in Toronto, even as free agency was looming this offseason.

That could be true, of course, or it could have been a deflection away from tough questions that disrupt the flow of a baseball season. The truth is, we don’t know what Bichette really wants.

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But we do know this: It’s been seven weeks since the Blue Jays lost Game 7 of the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers and Bichette is not back with the Blue Jays, remaining on the free agent market.

So, at this point, it’s fair to wonder what the hold up is:

We already examined this in full, but it’s worth giving the cliffs notes here: Do the Blue Jays actually want Bichette back?

It’s clear that Bichette is a valuable offensive player, coming off a .311 season with 18 homers and 94 RBIs. But, he’s not regarded as a good defensive shortstop, so do the Jays want to push him to second base, Ernie Clement to third and keep Addison Barger in right? Do they like that alignment?

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Or, would they rather sign Alex Bregman, who is older, and play him at third while pushing Clement to second? Bregman has two World Series titles to his name and is known as a great mentor in the clubhouse. He’s also a much better defender.

Or, would they rather sign Kyle Tucker? And put Barger at third and Clement at second?

The Blue Jays clearly have options on the free agent market, so are they playing the field and seeing if they can find an alignment they like better than one that includes Bichette?

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The Jays are the only organization he’s ever known, and they drafted and developed him. He has real relationships in the building. That counts for something. But does he want to move to second in Toronto? It may be one thing to do it somewhere else, but to step aside in a place where you’ve manned the position for seven years? That could be tougher to stomach.

And what about the respect factor? He just saw Vladimir Guerrero Jr. get paid $500 million. Does he want to take substantially less than his friend who he came in with? Again, homegrown relationships matter, but so does homegrown respect.

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This is just my personal opinion, but I’d want Bichette back if I were the Jays. He hit .311 in an era where batting average is basically disregarded. A homegrown combo of Bichette and Guerrero is the kind of thing that organizations dream about. I wouldn’t break that up, not for Bregman and not for Tucker, either.

Bichette is just 27 years old and figures to have six-to-eight really good years left in him. Treat him with respect and get the deal done.

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