TORONTO -- All-Star shortstop Bo Bichette went 2-for-5 with two RBIs in his return to the lineup Friday night in the Blue Jays' 5-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals.
Bichette, who was activated off the 10-day injured list before the game, hit second in his first game since being sidelined Aug. 27 because of a strained right quadriceps. His RBI double in the sixth tied the score at 1-1, and he also had an RBI single in the seventh to tie it at 2-2.
"When he has runners on base, he does anything to bring them in," Vladimir Guerrero Jr., speaking through an interpreter, said of his fellow All-Star. "It's great to have him back."
Bichette raised his batting average to .315 and has 154 hits, both tops on the Blue Jays despite the fact he has played only nine games since the end of July.
He didn't play for the Blue Jays between July 31 and Aug. 19 because of right knee patellar tendinitis. Toronto went 8-8 without the two-time American League hits leader.
The Blue Jays went 6-3 in Bichette's latest absence, a stretch in which Toronto played teams at or near the bottom of the standings in Washington, Colorado and Oakland.
"Just having him back in the lineup is definitely huge," Blue Jays left-hander Yusei Kikuchi said through an interpreter. "It puts a lot of pressure on the other teams. He's a big presence in our lineup and also a leader. It's really good to have a leader like him back."
Blue Jays manager John Schneider called Bichette "an instant shot of energy to our offense."
"He hasn't seen live pitching in 10 or 12 days and he's taking tough pitches," Schneider said. "It's impressive what he can do in the box."
Royals manager Matt Quatraro wasn't as pleased to see Bichette back.
"I would have been a lot happier if he had a few more days off," Quatraro joked.
Following this weekend's series against the last-place Royals, Toronto hosts wild-card rival Texas for four games. The Blue Jays (78-63) hold a half-game lead over the Rangers (77-63) for the final wild-card berth.
To make room for Bichette, Toronto optioned infielder Mason McCoy to Triple-A Buffalo.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.