Phillies’ competition for Bo Bichette should intensify after Kyle Tucker signing

If you’re a Phillies fan with your heart set on Bo Bichette, well, there’s some good news and bad news.

The good news is that Boston’s $130 million signing of former Phillie Ranger Suarez may have taken the Red Sox completely out of the running for Bichette, who seems likely to command a contract in the vicinity of $200 million over eight years. Willy Adames, an inferior player, signed a seven-year, $182 million contract with the Giants last offseason and you’d better believe that’s a number Bichette and his representatives are aiming to beat.

It’s a number many teams won’t be able to offer. Yet the Phillies, even though their payroll currently exceeds $300 million and they’re up against the harshest luxury tax threshold that comes with financial and draft penalties, are viewed around the baseball world as one of the favorites, if not the favorite to sign the dynamic 27-year-old.

Another long-term contract of $200M or more wouldn’t be easy for the Phils to sign off on, but they realize the spot they’re in. They realize the lineup looks no better than it did to end 2025. They realize the rotation is likely to take a step back with Suarez gone, Zack Wheeler potentially missing time early in the year and the unknown of what Andrew Painter or Aaron Nola will deliver. They realize Bryce Harper and Trea Turner will be in their mid-30s by 2027.

Do they need to sign Bichette? No, they could make do with what they have and probably win another 92-96 games in the regular season given the lack of true contenders in the National League outside of L.A. But the goal is obviously so much loftier than a regular-season win total, and Bichette is a proven performer when it matters most. Even if you don’t believe “clutch” translates from year to year, he has exhibited it his entire career. Bichette is a .322 hitter after the All-Star break, .329 in September with his highest OPS of any month, and he thrived last October despite dealing with a knee injury that cost him most of the final month.

So, if the good news is that the Suarez signing might’ve taken Boston out of the mix for Bichette, the bad news is it may spark three other suitors to increase their aggressiveness: the Mets, Blue Jays and Yankees.

Mets

The Mets made a reported $240 million offer to Kyle Tucker but missed out. That’s a ton of money they can reallocate elsewhere, and there aren’t many worthy free agents left to spend it on. With Tucker and Alex Bregman off the board, the best FAs left are Bichette, Framber Valdez and Cody Bellinger.

The Mets’ roster right now is the equivalent of an unfurnished mansion. They have huge-money guys like Juan Soto and Francisco Lindor with little else around them. The lineup isn’t scary past the three-spot. The rotation doesn’t have a single pitcher who projects as more than a No. 3-type starter. They lost closer Edwin Diaz and replaced him with two former Yankees relievers — Devin Williams and Luke Weaver — who struggled throughout much of 2025. Their current third base situation involves Brett Baty and Mark Vientos; Bichette would be a huge upgrade.

Don’t underestimate the “on-tilt” factor either. Mets owner Steve Cohen is probably reeling after watching his team’s horrific end to 2025 and the roster is unquestionably worse now than it was then.

And even if the Mets don’t sign Bichette, they will be wise to at least enter the fray to increase the bidding. They’ll want the Phillies to have to spend more because every major expenditure complicates future roster building.

Don’t sleep on the Mets when it comes to J.T. Realmuto, either. They have a ton to spend and it would be a way for them to improve behind the plate while also hurting the Phillies. Who knows if Realmuto would ultimately choose to sign there, but money talks.

Blue Jays

Toronto was interested in Tucker and Bregman, which tells you the Jays have an appetite for a megadeal with someone. They haven’t, however, appeared to be close with Bichette in terms of a contract number. Perhaps they have concerns about his declining defense and deteriorating foot speed. (The bat is the real calling card.) Perhaps they have worries about the injury-plagued half-season in 2024 when he hit .225/.277/.322.

But you project this lineup without Bichette and it just looks so much worse, likely pushing Anthony Santander into the primary protection spot behind Vladimir Guerrero Jr. after a brutal season for the former Oriole.

Toronto may pivot back around to Bichette now. Just because there’s been a contractual gap to this point doesn’t mean it can’t be closed, especially now that two top targets in Bregman and Tucker chose other teams.

Yankees

While Tucker was not viewed as a real candidate for the Yankees by the end, you have to wonder about the amount of pressure they’re feeling right now. They haven’t won a World Series in 17 years. They’re no longer the feared “Evil Empire” that outspends everyone. No, that’s the Dodgers now. At some point, don’t they have to utilize their rich tradition and financial might? Don’t they have to try to separate themselves in a division that is wildly unpredictable from year to year? They’ve done nothing this offseason, unless you count Paul DeJong and Ryan Weathers as something.

It does not seem that Bichette is merely using the Phillies to generate a bigger offer from a different team. That’s a plus. Now let’s see if they can pull it off.