Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro said Friday that Bichette will open the 2018 season at Double-A New Hampshire, TSN.ca reports.
He'll be joined in the Eastern League by Vladimir Guerrero Jr., giving New Hampshire the most highly regarded pair of hitting prospects of any affiliate across the minors. While splitting time between Low-A Lansing and High-A Dunedin last season, Bichette captured the minor-league batting title with a .362 average and accumulated 59 extra-base hits (14 home runs) and 22 steals across 499 plate appearances. The 20-year-old will appear in exhibition games with the Blue Jays in Montreal on Monday and Tuesday before reporting to New Hampshire ahead of his second year of full-season ball.