Toronto Blue Genes: Guerrero, Bichette, Biggio
With all the success the motion picture industry is having these days with sequels, it’s no surprise Major League Baseball is following suit. Just look at all these young players whose fathers played in the big leagues.
Baseball is a copycat league. A team has success with shifts, everybody shifts. Another team has success with launch angles, everybody is doing launch angles. Another team has success with a player, everybody wants his offspring.
Maybe it’s one of those chicken and egg things where we may never know which came first: motion picture sequels or people having children.
Okay, admittedly I’m being a little silly here. Baseball has a long and storied history of employing the sons of former players. Ever heard of a guy named Ken Griffey, Jr? You might be surprised to learn that his father was actually Ken Griffey, Sr. Yes, the same Ken Griffey who was a pretty darn good MLB ballplayer.
Looking around the league right now, there are sons of former players aplenty: Dee Gordon, Cody Bellinger, Cam Bedrosian, Delino Deshields, Jr. Are there more “legacy” players succeeding in professional baseball than in football or basketball? I don’t know. I haven’t done the research; but let’s just say, “Yes!”
There’s one team out there taking this whole thing to the next level. I’d like to introduce you to the Toronto Blue Jays. They currently have Bo Bichette, son of the gnome-faced Colorado Rockies slugger Dante Bichette, and then there’s Cavan Biggio, son of Hall of Famer Craig Biggio—who appears to have been trying to name his son “Kevin,” but all those hit-by-pitches finally caught up to him and now his son is named “Cavan.”
These two excellent Toronto prospects should be joining them shortly to help invigorate a team clearly on its last legs. However, the real prize young stud is the son of Vladimir Guerrero, who goes by the name Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. He hits like his dad but with patience and plate discipline. And just like his pops, he swings with ferocity.
He’s not so great at playing third base, so maybe he winds up being more of a first base/designated hitter type. He’s got the arm. Some scouts give him a 70 rating (on a 20-80 scale). He’s also got a 70 appetite that isn’t so great on any scale. However, when a player can hit like Lil’ Vlad, you just get him into the lineup and let someone else handle the defense. Or you know what, just put him out in left field and hope he doesn’t go all Hanley Ramirez on you.
Okay, back to these other guys.
Bichette plays shortstop, and he also has a plus bat and leaves something to be desired on defense. (Side note: Can a team have two designated hitters?) “BoBi Fett” has an unconventional swing, but he hits the ball hard—kind of like his dad. Fortunately, he’s much better looking than his dad and much better at baseball than his brother Dante Bichette, Jr.
His weak footwork might get him bumped to third base or second base, but there’s still a chance he could surprise and stay at shortstop. He’s not as good a hitter as Vlad, but there’s a lot of players currently in the big leagues that can also be described that way. BoBi Fett could be up in Toronto this year, but he may get pushed back a bit for contract manipulation reasons and start mid-April 2019.
Cavan Biggio looked like he might have just been a lottery ticket by the Blue Jays, but I think we all know now this was part of their plan. He wasn’t very impressive last season, though he did have decent strike zone awareness. However, this season he’s got 13 home runs and a 1.012 OPS that has pushed him up prospect charts.
The power looks like it’s no joke (even if the spelling of his name is). (Editor’s Note: Jed, your name is “Jed.” Let’s take it easy on making fun of other people’s names.) (Note to Editor: Jon, good point. But also let me know if they find the guy who stole the “h” from your name.)
It’s not clear what “Kevin’s” position will be. Toronto has played him at second mostly, where he’s an okay defender. Hold on. Can a team have three designated hitters? Oh, man, can you imagine the old-timers who go apoplectic when you mention having a DH in each league reading that sentence and their heads exploding into a million pieces?
Disclaimer
These are prospects, so there’s always a chance they’ll wind up as disappointments. But these guys look like they’re going to be helping the Toronto Blue Jays win games for the next decade. They’ve certainly got the pedigree.
