The Toronto Blue Jays had a long-shot approach to keeping star Bo Bichette, hoping their star infielder would skip a longer deal and return to Toronto on a short-term basis.
A new report on Bichette’s future may prove that Toronto’s plan never stood a chance.
The Philadelphia Phillies met with Bichette this week and several reports indicate that they have become frontrunners, with a signing potentially coming in the next few days. The Phillies are expected to be the highest bidder and offer Bichette something the Blue Jays wouldn’t — a long-term deal.
Phillies Close to Landing Bo Bichette
Bichette could be getting close to punching his ticket back across the southern border. ESPN’s Jeff Passan said in an appearance on Sportsnet that he expects the Phillies to be the highest bidder for the star infielder.
Mitch Bannon of The Athletic reported that the Blue Jays wanted Bichette to return to Toronto, but only if he would take a one-year deal.
“The Jays will likely stay in touch with Bichette’s representatives as free agency remains fluid and plans evolve,” Bannon wrote. “Perhaps if Bichette elects to take a shorter deal with opt-outs, similar to the contracts signed by Alex Bregman, Pete Alonso, and Cody Bellinger in recent offseasons, the Jays could make things work for a year.”
MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki reported that the Phillies can clear close to $25 million in payroll by offering J.T. Realmuto a contract in the $13-15 million tang and trading third baseman Alec Bohm. That would give them enough space to sign Bichette, but only with a long-term contract — something the Blue Jays were not able to offer.
“Bichette likely would cost more than that,” Zolecki wrote. “But the Phillies could make the money more palatable by giving him a longer-term deal to spread out the average annual value, which affects the luxury tax. They are probably open to that because of Bichette’s age.”
Blue Jays Moving On
The Blue Jays have reportedly accepted the reality of Bichette’s departure, with Bob Nightengale of USA Today reporting that they’re moving on to an even bigger target — Kyle Tucker.
“I think they’ve already made their choice. They want Tucker,” Nightengale said.
There is even more competition for Tucker. The New York Post reported that the New York Mets have offered him a four-year deal worth $50 million per season, taking some sting out of losing Pete Alonso to the Baltimore Orioles in free agency.
While still large, that would be a lesser contract that many anticipated Tucker would land in free agency. Passan reported on Sportsnet that his market has softened considerably.
“The market might be almost working backward at this point where it started off high, that was the expectation, that was the hope, didn’t materialize quite like he liked,” Passan told Sportsnet. “Now, he’s going to go back down, get that AAV juiced up, get guys interested and then suddenly all bets are off.”
Passan added that some teams are already looking ahead, not wanting to lock into too much spending now when an even better free agent class is expected in 2028.
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