This stat exposes how clutch Blue Jays’ biggest bats really are

A recent reshuffle of the top of the Toronto Blue Jays order has had some mixed results over the four-game experiment. Bo Bichette, Addison Barger and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. were slotted in the 1-3 spots respectively in the Toronto lineup and in the first two games against the Diamondbacks they went a combined 15-29 with four home runs and 11 RBIs and just two strikeouts. In the series finale and the opener against the White Sox, they are just 5-24 with two RBIs and four strikeouts.

Even with the huge grading curve through the first four games, this is a top of the order that could stick together for a while based on their track records throughout the 2025 season, with all three guys producing in the clutch.

This stat exposes how clutch Blue Jays’ biggest bats really are

Bichette and Guerrero are among the league leaders when it comes to hitting with runners in scoring position and while Barger doesn’t qualify for those league leader stats, based on his at-bats, he’s made the most out of his opportunities when called upon.

Going into Saturday’s game, Bichette is third in the American League with an OPS of 1.120, just behind the Twins Byron Buxton (1.129) and the Yankees Aaron Judge (1.204). Meantime, Guerrero is sitting seventh in that statistic with a 1.050 OPS in those situations and Barger has managed an .858 OPS which would put him in within the top 20 in the AL, if he qualified.

This is a stat the Blue Jays were hoping to see some improvement on from last season where they ranked 20th in MLB (10th in the AL) with a .727 mark. This year, as a team they have pulled that up to .752 which is third best in the AL and seventh best in all of baseball.

The top three trio lead the team among their regular starters in this category as well and that’s why it made sense to push Barger up into the two-hole, giving Guerrero more opportunities to drive in runs if both Bichette and Barger get on in the first inning.

Scoring in that first inning has been an issue for the Blue Jays throughout the season, and this is an opportunity for Toronto to try and force that to become less of a detriment as the season goes on. Currently they are slashing .269/.323/.397 with 28 runs scored, which is the third least amount of runs they tallied in any given inning.

Barger being slotted between Bichette and Guerrero helps break up the back-to-back righty matchup that pitchers will see to begin the game. It’s especially helpful against right handers, which Barger is hitting .271/.331/.528 against with all eight of his home runs hit off of right-handed hurlers.

While the previous two contests have produced anemic results on the scoreboard, Bichette, Barger and Guerrero should have an opportunity to get a lengthy run as the top three in the Blue Jays batting order. While Barger missed Saturday's game against the White Sox, it makes sense to slot him back into the number two spot in the order, especially when they are putting up some of the best numbers in the league in some vital categories.