TORONTO (AP) — All-Star shortstop Bo Bichette was activated off the 10-day injured list by the Toronto Blue Jays before Friday’s game against the Kansas City Royals and was set to play shortstop and bat second.
Bichette leads the Blue Jays with a .314 batting average and 152 hits despite playing only eight games since the end of July. He’s been dealing with a strained right quadriceps since leaving an Aug. 27 loss to Cleveland.
Bichette also didn’t play for the Blue Jays between July 31 and Aug. 19 because of right knee patellar tendinitis. Toronto went 8-8 during that stretch without the two-time AL hits leader.
The Blue Jays went 6-3 in Bichette’s latest absence while Toronto played teams at or near the bottom of the standings in Washington, Colorado and Oakland.
Following this weekend’s series against the last-place Royals, Toronto hosts wild-card rival Texas for four games. The Blue Jays (77-63) held a half-game lead over the Rangers (76-63) entering play Friday.
Manager John Schneider said Friday that catcher Danny Jansen will miss the rest of the regular season after having surgery Thursday on his fractured right middle finger. Jansen’s status for the playoffs will be evaluated if Toronto advances to the postseason. Jansen was struck by a foul tip while catching against the Rockies last Friday.
Third baseman Matt Chapman resumed hitting and fielding drills Friday after having a splint removed from his sprained right middle finger. Like Bichette, Chapman hasn’t played since leaving an Aug. 27 game against Cleveland. There’s no timeline for his return.
To make room for Bichette, Toronto optioned infielder Mason McCoy to Triple-A Buffalo.
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