Reese Kaplan -- Imagining the 2026 Mets Infield

During the offseason Back in 2004 the Texas Rangers made an unprecedented trade of the American League’s MVP, Alex Rodriguez, to the New York Yankees.  They were so anxious to rid themselves of the remainder of his 10 year contract that they accepted relatively little in return.  They got Alfonso Soriano and Joaquin Arias for A-Rod plus they paid down $67 million of his remaining salary obligation of $179 million.  The Yankees already had their team captain Derek Jeter firmly entrenched at shortstop so they asked and got the current MVP Rodriguez to agree to switch to play third base instead of shortstop.

This baseball history came to mind when the lists of prospective free agents evolved and one name soared towards the top of the list.  The Blue Jays’ current shortstop Bo Bichette is slated to test the open market when the 2025 postseason concludes.  After an injury plagued off year in 2024 he roared back this season by hitting .311 with 18 HRs and 94 RBIs.  At just age 28 for the 2026 season he’s going to be in very high demand indeed. 

Now for the Mets they have a Jeterish moment themselves.  Entrenched at shortstop is Francisco Lindor who the Mets obtained with a trade to Cleveland back in the 2021 offseason when they sent Andres Gimenez, Amed Rosario, Isaiah Greene and Josh Wolf to bring both Lindor and pitcher Carlos Carrasco to Queens.  While both Gimenez and Rosario have been solid ballplayers during their careers there is no question that the Mets came out well ahead in this trade.

Now at the time with Rosario and Gimenez leaving the club had a vacant job at shortstop and Lindor took over, not just hitting well but also providing near Gold Glove level defense (an award he’d earned twice for Cleveland).  While his defense has slipped a bit, his offense is as good as ever and when you provide 30-30 numbers it’s hard to argue with his value to the New York Mets team.

Now coming full circle the Mets now are likely going to take a long and hard look at the prospect of bringing Bo Bichette back to the USA and see how he would fit into the club’s desire to add offense while also preventing runs from the opposition.  As a shortstop Bichette is good but not great.  Consequently the belief is that the Mets would need to persuade him to accept a new contract and a new defensive alignment either at 2nd base or 3rd base with the more highly paid Lindor sticking to his familiar ground at shortstop.  Witnessing the old Yankee move with Alex Rodriguez going to third base, baseball has precedence for such things happening.

The other question, of course, is how much is Bichette worth as a free agent.  Given his age and performance pedigree, projections suggest he will land a 7-8 year contract priced from $182 million to as high as $200 million.  That works out to a pay rate of $25 to $26 million per year.  It’s a high number but what you have to consider is how he might fit into the team’s pursuit of the postseason.

The big names and numbers to consider up front are the two pending opt-out candidates in Pete Alonso and Edwin Diaz.  For Alonso the projections are a multiyear deal in the neighborhood of $29.5 per year for as many years as both the team and player are comfortable taking.  For Diaz the equation is a little stranger with his current $20+ million per year being potentially challenged for a higher number for a greater number of years.  Assuming a modest 10% increase in pay but stretched for four to five years, he’s another 9 figure contract to be considered.

Now  what kind of player would Bichette be for the Mets?  Well, if you look at his career a typical season would provide a .294 average with 24 HRs and 95 RBIs.  For a point of comparison flash back to what Edgardo Alfonzo provided as a Met.  His career average year was .284 with 16 HRs and 80 RBIs tempered a bit by his first three years and last four years where he didn’t reach this metric (which means he was doing even better on the years in between).

Bichette provides not just run production but a steady small ball presence that has been fairly absent from recent New York Mets lineups.  His addition to the Mets would enable them to continue the gamble that Brett Baty is an improving player along with Lindor and Bichette in the infield.  Who is at first base is still very much up in the air.  So is the question about who closes games.  If one of these two players depart then the Mets could add Bichette with a pretty even impact on the payroll. 

Is this direction something the Mets should consider?  Would Bichette be amenable to a position change?  It’s very early but it’s the kind of debate the front office needs to have.