Bo Bichette signs with New York Mets, Phillies miss out on free agent slugger
New York Mets home opener excites fans
The New York Mets played their home opener against the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday, and FOX 5 was there before the game to speak with fans about the 2025 season.
PHILADELPHIA - Bo Bichette and the New York Mets agreed Friday to a $126 million, three-year contract, two people familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.
The Philadelphia Phillies were rumored to be heavily interested in Bichette, and reportedly had an offer out to the free agent before the Mets swooped in.
What we know:
The people spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the deal was subject to a successful physical.
The infielder Bichette can opt out after the first and second season. He would receive $47 million for one year and $89 million for two years, one of the people said.
The deal does not contain any deferred money and Bichette gets a full no-trade provision.
Phillies miss out
Despite a crowded infield, the Philadelphia Phillies were rumored to be heavily interested in Bichette before he signed with the Mets on Friday afternoon.
USA Today's Bob Nightengale reports that the Phillies "believed they would sign" Bichette as recently as Thursday night, offering him a 7-year, $200M contract.
The Mets, however, swooped in with a short-term contract for more money annually, and opt-outs after two seasons.
The Phillies would have needed to shuffle players to add Bichette to the mix with Alec Bohm at third base, Trea Turner at shortstop, and Bryson Stott at second base.
The backstory:
A two-time All-Star shortstop, Bichette hit 18 home runs and 94 RBIs for the Blue Jays in 2025. He homered off Shohei Ohtani in Game 7 of the World Series.
Bichette was injured last season in a Sept. 6 collision with Yankees catcher Austin Wells. It kept him out of the lineup until the World Series. He returned for Game 1 of the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers and played second base for the first time in six years.
Bichette finished second in the major leagues to Yankees slugger Aaron Judge with a .311 batting average this season, hitting 18 homers with 94 RBIs in 139 games.
He’s twice led the AL in hits.
Bichette turns 28 in March and had played his entire career with the Blue Jays since they drafted him in the second round of the 2018 draft. The son of former big leaguer Dante Bichette, Bo Bichette is a career .294 hitter with 111 home runs and 437 RBIs in 748 career games.
Bichette was one of the last remaining big name free agents after Kyle Tucker agreed to a $240 million, four-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers.