I don’t understand why everyone is trying to move Bo Bichette away from shortstop. Ask any team around baseball and they’ll say the same thing: he can play shortstop. They don’t have concerns about his ability to do so, at least right now. Perhaps he can shift to second base later on in his career. But for now there should be zero concerns or thoughts about moving Bichette off of shortstop.
After all, Bichette, 27, is one of the best infielders in baseball. He’s coming off a season in which he hit .311/.357/.483 with 18 home runs and 94 RBI. While many peg his value around the seven-year, $182 million contract that Willy Adames received from the San Francisco Giants, I wouldn’t be surprised if Bichette’s eventual contract came in higher. Much higher.
Why is Bo Bichette still on the market?
Well, have you seen the offensive free agent market? It’s moving at a snail's pace. Bichette, Kyle Tucker, Cody Bellinger, Alex Bregman and many others remain unsigned. So there has been little movement, though it wouldn’t be a surprise if Bellinger and Bregman were the next big names to sign.
It’s unclear if Bichette will take meetings with teams in person like Kyle Tucker has, with the superstar slugger meeting with the Toronto Blue Jays in Florida, as first reported by FanSided. But it’s possible that Bichette will do that or at least do Zoom meetings with teams to learn more about the eventual team he will spend the rest of his career with.
What does the market for Bichette look like?
The first team that comes to mind is the Toronto Blue Jays. Bichette has spent his entire career in Toronto. He’s grown with the organization and emerged as one of their most important players. They want him back, but they are also having conversations with Kyle Tucker. Landing either one of them would put the Jays squarely in position to get back to the World Series next season.
The Los Angeles Dodgers always feel like a sneaky team to watch, especially with their love for star players. They’re considering Kyle Tucker. They are seemingly always involved in almost any star players free agency and really, when they are, how often do they miss? They feel like a really sneaky good option for Bichette.
The other team that stands out is the Boston Red Sox. They’ve been big-game hunting this offseason and came up well short on Kyle Schwarber. Alex Bregman remains unsigned. If they fail to retain Bregman, do they try to steal Bichette away from Toronto? I’m not ruling that out whatsoever.
There are other teams involved on Bichette, of course. It's just not those three. But as the offseason progresses, his market will come into focus. And I expect him to be among the highest paid shortstops in baseball when it's all said and done.