MLB insider reveals what Mets are hoping Bo Bichette does with $42M opt out

2 weeks ago 14

The New York Mets and their fanbase are going to have to wait until October, and potentially even after the MLB World Series, to determine what the future of Bo Bichette in New York will look like.

He signed a three-year, $126 million contract over the offseason with options after the first and second seasons of the deal. Will Bichette opt out of his $42 million contract in 2027, or will he accept his option?

MLB insider Bob Nightengale of USA Today revealed what the Mets are hoping Bichette will do with this $42 million option. Despite his struggles, New York is hoping he doesn't opt out of his current contract.

Mets hope Bo Bichette doesn't opt out of $42M deal

"The Mets are hoping that Bichette at least stick around another season before opting out of the final year of his three-year, $126 million deal," Nightengale writes.

Bichette has struggled this season and has been worth well below the $42 million AAV of his current contract. But the Mets want him to come back for the 2027 season and not opt out of his current deal despite that.

Losing Bichette would be, as Nightengale called it, "disastrous" for the Mets. That's even though he's played poorly this season, posting 0.8 bWAR in 147 games with a .707 OPS, the second-lowest of his MLB career.

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Signing Bichette for so much money and only getting one year out of him would be a huge letdown. But with a weaker free agent market, it's a very real possibility he tests the waters again this winter.

Of course, the looming labor negotiations might make this decision a bit tricky for Bichette. However, if he's confident in landing a new deal with more guaranteed money, then he could opt out of his Mets deal and hit free agency.

While Bichette opting out would free up $42 million from a player who's not been very productive, it would leave a hole in the lineup and make the Mets' major offseason investment in Bichette look a lot worse.