Bo Bichette on Choosing Mets Over Phillies: ‘It Just Became Obvious’

Bo Bichette didn’t exactly keep the sports world waiting. When the star infielder hit free agency this past winter, two teams made the strongest push: the Mets and the Phillies. Both had money. Both wanted to win now. Both fanbases are loud in that particular way that makes road games feel like home games. But Bichette picked New York, and on Thursday, in Philadelphia of all places, he finally explained why.

“I mean, at the end of the day, it just became obvious to me that it was the right decision for me and my wife and my family,” Bichette told reporters before the Mets-Phillies game, per SNY Mets. “There’s a lot of parallels between the two, passionate fanbase and organizations trying to win. Yeah, it just became clear to me that Mets was the right decision.”

That’s about as honest as you get from a guy being asked to explain a decision while standing in the other team’s ballpark. No fluff. No vague talking points about culture. He just said the Mets felt right and that was that.

He’s Having a Rough Year But the Ceiling is Still There

Here’s the thing about Bichette though. The 28-year-old entered Thursday’s game hitting .254 with a .299 on-base percentage and a .378 slugging percentage across 74 games. That’s eight homers and 11 doubles. Not exactly the kind of production you write a nine-figure check for. But everyone who watches him knows the talent is still there. He’s had stretches where he looks like one of the ten best hitters in the game. The Mets are betting that version shows up again.

The Phillies Are Right There Watching

And you have to think the Phillies are kicking themselves a little. They’re sitting in second place in the NL East now, which is better than the Mets who are dead last. Philly’s offense has been spotty outside of a few guys. They could absolutely use a hitter with Bichette’s upside. But he’s in Queens now, so the Phillies will have to shop for help elsewhere. Word around the league is they’ll be aggressive before the August trade deadline, probably looking for at least one bat, maybe two.

It’s one of those situations where the team that didn’t land the free agent ends up chasing a cheaper version of the same problem at the deadline. Could work out. Could also be the kind of thing that gets mentioned every time Bichette goes 3-for-4 against them.