Blue Jays need their leaders to lead as schedule toughens up

Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their ballclub

Inside the Blue Jays clubhouse, desperation is becoming a four-letter word. While it’s something you will never hear uttered by any Jays’ players, coaches or front office people, it hangs over the group like a threatening cloud before the storm.

This is not desperation born of looking at the standings and losing hope, because, clearly, other wild-card contenders are also struggling, so the Jays honestly believe their fate still rests in their own hands. No, this brand of Jays desperation rests in finding a leader to take them to the Promised Land of late October. Without a leader stepping up, any post-season presence will be brief, at best. It should be either Bo Bichette or Vlad Guerrero Jr. But not so far with 18 games remaining.

Last September, it was a red-hot Bichette who stepped up to put together a stunning stretch drive leading to a hosting-the-wild-card berth, but, to be fair right now, Bo is recently emerging from a second stint on the IL with leg issues and is struggling t…