TORONTO — Hits were in short supply between the Toronto Blue Jays and the red-hot New York Mets on Monday.
After the Blue Jays opted to give their starters an extra day of rest, the club turned to a bullpen day for the opener of the three-game series against the Mets. Blue Jays relievers Ryan Burr, Luis Frias and Ryan Yarbrough combined to hold the Mets to one hit over seven innings, while Mets starter Tylor Megill held the Blue Jays to one hit over six innings.
But after the Blue Jays took a 2-1 lead in the seventh, an error from Ernie Clement, a wild pitch from Tommy Nance and a passed ball by catcher Brian Serven in the eighth allowed the Mets to capitalize in a two-run inning that ultimately sealed their 3-2 win at the Rogers Centre.
But it could have been worse for the Blue Jays after Vladimir Guerrero Jr. fouled a couple of pitches off his left toe. X-rays performed during the game were negative and manager John Schneider said they’ll see how Guerrero feels on Tuesday.
In the meantime, here are three takeaways on what’s happening with the Blue Jays.
Bo Bichette nears his return; states his desire to stay in Toronto long term
After spending the weekend with the Blue Jays, Bo Bichette stayed back in Atlanta and will join the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons in Gwinnett to begin his rehab assignment on Tuesday as he works his way back from the right calf strain that’s sidelined him since July.
The plan is for Bichette to play three to five innings on Tuesday and build up from there. After a handful of games, the hope is he’ll be ready to return by next week’s series against the Texas Rangers, Schneider said.
When Bichette returns, he’ll be looking to use the handful of remaining games to finish what’s been a trying season — both for the team and him individually — on a positive note. As Bichette looks ahead, he said in a recent interview with Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi that “my ultimate goal really is to play with Vladdy (Guerrero Jr.) forever, to win a championship with him and to do that with this organization.”
Bichette, a free agent after the 2025 season along with Guerrero, frequently appeared in trade rumours this season and there was a report from USA Today’s Bob Nightengale that the 26-year-old shortstop “has no plans to stay in Toronto once he’s a free agent.”
Schneider, who’s managed both Bichette and Guerrero since the minors, wasn’t surprised to hear the Blue Jays shortstop voice his desire to remain in Toronto.
“I’ve known those guys for a long time. I’ve had those conversations with Bo and Vlad over the course of the years,” the Blue Jays manager said. “Just in talking to Bo when he got back after being home for a while, I think his perspective is in a good place. And both those guys, they understand it. They’ve played together their whole career and they understand how this business works, too. And, they’ve become really good friends, so it’s not surprising what he said.”
Guerrero has also expressed his hope to play in Toronto long-term, creating a scenario where the front office has to navigate the potential of signing the club’s two cornerstones for what would likely be franchise-record amounts. Already, it was expected to be a pivotal offseason for the Blue Jays, who are intent on returning to contention next season, but now the team must also consider how — or if — they can keep both Guerrero and Bichette long-term.
Former Blue Jays manager John Gibbons ‘always rooting’ for Schneider
Schneider first met former Blue Jays manager John Gibbons many years ago during spring training when Schneider was a farmhand in Toronto’s system, who was “just the guy that was there, catching and getting into the back half of a game.” Later, Schneider would work alongside Gibbons at spring training throwing batting practice as a minor-league manager who hoped he could follow in Gibbons’ footsteps and manage an MLB club one day.
This week, the pair sat in opposing dugouts as Schneider was in his third season as the Blue Jays manager, while Gibbons is in his first as the Mets’ bench coach. The pair have stayed in touch over the years, even after Gibbons was let go as manager of the Blue Jays after the 2018 season. Gibbons said on Monday that he’s a “big fan of Schneids.”
“He’s a good baseball guy. I feel his pain, man, when he takes heat,” Gibbons said. “I mean, everybody in this business does and I’ve been in those spots. They got to the postseason and we would have died for that years ago, right? But of course, it’s been in and out. He just needs to stay strong, stay positive. Keep running the boys out there and see what happens… We’ve always been good friends and I’m always rooting for him.”
In his years watching Gibbons lead, Schneider said he learned “a lot” from him.
“I learned a lot on how to handle players. I learned a lot on how to be honest. He’s such a good baseball guy,” Schneider said. “I just love the way he goes about it. He’s easy to talk to, a straight shooter. He taught me a lot. The main thing is just watching him interact with some players, whether it be a superstar or a non-roster invite. He was always very welcoming.”
Gibbons managed the Blue Jays for 11 seasons over two separate stints from 2004-08 and 2013-18. In that time he managed players such as Roy Halladay, José Bautista, Edwin Encarnación, Josh Donaldson, Troy Tulowitzki and David Price.
Feel-good moment of the day had to be Gibby’s return as #Mets bench coach to #RogersCentre. For his media avail, the two-time Jays manager, John Gibbons still believes his ‘15 Jays team could have won the World Series. I do not believe there’s a scoreboard video upcoming 😅⚾️🥂 pic.twitter.com/ZgoLNVbeBL
— Richard Griffin (@RGriffBaseball) September 9, 2024
In 2015, Gibbons led the Blue Jays back to the postseason for the first time since the club won back-to-back World Series in 1992 and 1993. Bringing October baseball back to Toronto remains one of Gibbons’ fondest memories during his time with the organization.
“We’d hear about (the postseason drought) every year. You get tired of hearing about that,” he said.
Gibbons is enjoying a successful first season with the Mets, who remain in the thick of the NL wild-card race. He said he’s content as bench coach under Mets manager Carlos Mendoza and isn’t preoccupied with chasing another manager job. But when Gibbons was a manager, Schneider said, he had a knack for relating to his players.
“Just watching him interact with guys like Bautista, Donaldson, Tulo, pitchers, he was just him,” Schneider said. “And I think that goes a long way. It’s easy to be standoffish with those guys because of their emotions or opinions, but he was kind of just him and I think that resonated.”
Spoiler Alert: Blue Jays in the middle of NL wild-card race
The MLB schedule-makers have thrust the Blue Jays into the thick of the NL wild-card race. The Blue Jays have played back-to-back series against the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets as the two NL East rivals jockey in a tight race for the final wild-card sport in the National League.
As play wrapped on Monday, the Mets were a game ahead of the Braves for the third wild-card spot after Atlanta fell to the Reds in a makeup game. But the Blue Jays have the power to tip the scales for Atlanta if they win the series over the Mets (assuming the Braves handle the Washington Nationals this week).
The Blue Jays have been out of the playoff hunt for months. Ushering in young players and letting them develop at the MLB level has superseded winning at all costs down the stretch. Being involved in meaningful baseball games in September is still a learning opportunity for their rookies, Schneider said.
“We talked about it before the series in Atlanta and today. This team is hot and they are playing with their hair on fire and they’re going to do everything they can to win,” he said. “So what (can) you do to counteract that? Games like this speed up the development process. It’s like playoff games in the minor leagues — that speeds up the development process. So, hopefully, the guys can respond and learn from the times where you’re losing a one-run game and turn it into a one-run win.”
(Photo of Bo Bichette: Nick Turchiaro / Imagn Images)
