TORONTO – Troy Tulowitzki will remain sidelined for the entire 2018 season, but the 33-year-old expects to return at full strength in 2019. When he does, he’s determined to remain at the lone position he’s played in the major-leagues: shortstop.

“If there’s someone that’s better than me, I’ll be the first one to say it,” Tulowitzki said. “I look around the big leagues and try to be the best shortstop in the game. There’s been plenty of years I’ve been the best shortstop in the game.

“There’s been years I’ve been the worst shortstop in the game and if we had anybody that was worth anything they should have taken my job. That’s the nature of the business. It’s a really simple question–a good question, but a really simple one.”

With Tulowitzki sidelined, the Blue Jays have relied on Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Aledmys Diaz at shortstop. Those players have impressed Tulowitzki, but their success doesn’t impact his resolve to play short.

“I just said I’m a shortstop,” he said. “If someone’s better than me, I’ll pack my bags and go home. I do think I bring a lot more out there than what you guys see and that’s part of baseball. There’s things behind the scenes that go on. There’s things I try to help teammates with. I think I do bring a veteran leadership, so those things shouldn’t go unnoticed.”

Tulowitzki missed the final two months of the 2017 season after sustaining a ligament tear and compression fracture in his right ankle in a collision with C.J. Cron at first base. Early in the 2018 season, he had bone spurs removed from both heels.

He had hoped to return in 2018, but didn’t progress to the point that he could reliably take the field day after day.

“Right now I don’t trust the fact that I can go out there for 60 straight games and be able to answer the bell every single time,” Tulowitzki said. “If I can’t go out there on those backfields and practice for three or four days in a row, then it wouldn’t be very smart for me to come up here and have to have a day off every couple days. When I come back I want to play every single day.”

The 33-year-old’s contract will pay him $20 million in 2019 and $14 million in 2020. The deal includes a $15 million club option for 2021 with a $4 million buyout.

“I miss having him around,” manager John Gibbons said Saturday. “He really shored us up in ’15 with his defence alone. I’ve got nothing but good things (to say about) him.”