Blue Jay: Bo Bichette shows his class in more ways than one

Yesterday a clip circulated around social media that showed Bo Bichette of the Blue Jays showing off a great deal of class, and why he’ll be a cornerstone of this franchise.

When the Blue Jays engaged in a full-scale rebuild during the 2018 season, they did so knowing that they had some very high-end talent coming in the their minor league system such as Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette, Cavan Biggio, and several more. So far those young talents have proven to have exciting abilities on the field, and in many ways are showing off maturity beyond their years while off of it.

In Bichette’s case in particular, the 21-year-old arrived to the highest level in literal record-breaking fashion, tearing apart opposing pitchers and proving he was more than ready for the challenge of the big leagues. Even more importantly, Bichette has routinely showed off his maturity, intelligence, and just an all-around great attitude

Take Monday for instance, as a clip of Bichette talking with a pair of young fans in the Bahamas circulated around social media. The Blue Jays’ shortstop was very gracious with the young men, spending time chatting with him, teasing them that he was going to get him in trouble (for hopping a fence), and even asking one of them about his own ambitions as a baseball player, asking him “how smooth do you want to be?”

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Not only was it endearing to see Bichette take time for young fans like this, it gives us a window into what type of leader he can be for this team going forward. Sure, he was on camera and it looked good, but it’s not hard to spot a genuinely nice person taking time for young people, and that’s exactly what we witnessed from the budding Blue Jay star. I also loved the way he answered one question in particular.

When Bichette was asked about facing Clayton Kershaw, the kids set him up with a prime opportunity to talk about getting the best of one of this generation’s greatest pitchers. For those that missed it or have forgotten, Bichette hit two home runs against Kershaw in their only meeting, and with the cameras rolling, he could have talked about what a great feeling it was or even bragged about the moment, and I don’t think anyone would have batted an eye.

Instead, Bichette responded to being asked what it was like to face off against him by saying, “Clayton Kershaw’s a legend, man”. When the kid asked about Kershaw’s legendary curveball, Bichette doubled down and said, “His curveball is nasty right? I’m just lucky he didn’t throw it to me twice”.

I don’t know about you, but I’m not sure if I could script a better response than the way young Bo handled those questions. He showed the type of humility and class that you want to see out of anyone involved in an organization, and he’s figured this part out at the tender age of 21. Again, I realize the cameras were rolling and he was chatting with a couple of kids, but would have made it all the more easy to get caught up in the moment and show off a few moments of arrogance.

I’ve talked about Bichette’s attitude before, specifically when he spoke about his desire to be the best player in baseball someday, and I loved the bravado he showed then. However, what makes it even more encouraging is that Bichette talks about wanting to be the best player, rather than how good he already is. Off the top of my head, the only time I can think about Bichette talking about his own abilities in a forceful way was when he expressed the desire to make his MLB debut while still in Triple-A, and he clearly backed up his point that he was ready once he arrived.

Bichette’s talent makes him a special player for the Blue Jays to build around, and I can’t wait to see what he does with a full season in 2020. That talent is important, but his attitude will separate him from the pack as a future All-Star, an easily marketable figure, and a natural leader. What’s not to like?