Bo Bichette flying under FA radar

Star Blue Jays SS must re-establish himself in ‘25

There has been so much talk about the pending free-agency of Blue Jays’ first-baseman Vlad Guerrero Jr, given the passing of his, self-imposed, negotiating deadline, which was the first day of full-squad workouts, that many have forgotten that shortstop Bo Bichette is in the same contract boat in terms of playing out his final season in 2025 before going onto the open market.

The two friends, whose Blue Jays’ careers, starting at A-Lansing, have been forever intertwined, had entered the 2024 season as 1A and 1B on the radar of the Jays loyal fanbase, with spirited debate as to which one (or was it both) was more important to the club’s future and the oft-stated front-office goal of being a sustainable contender. But, in 2024, while Vlad stepped up with, arguably, his most impressive offensive season, Bo took a step backwards, struggling to find his groove at the plate before finally being injured and sidelined for the remainder of the year.

So, while debate now rages about whether Guerrero, in fact, deserves the third-highest, total-value, contract in MLB, behind Juan Soto and Shohei Ohtani and ahead of Mike Trout and Mookie Betts, all that’s left for Bichette is answering the question of “who loves you, baby?” Where does Bo now rank as a possible priority among the 29 other MLB teams, as an asset at the most important defensive position on the infield? That being said, how much is that winning value worth in today’s market?

Using the chart of current shortstops, listed below, for all 30 teams, age, service time, salary and years of commitment with their club, the potential destination for a healthy, bounce-back Bo becomes limited, compared to the bank-is-open landscape for Vlad, his running-mate.

Teams locked in to talented, but expensive veterans (7): Twins (Carlos Correa); Rangers (Corey Seager); Cubs (Dansby Swanson); Mets (Francisco Lindor); Phillies (Trea Turner); Padres (Xander Bogaerts) and Giants (Willy Adames).

Teams committed to talented young homegrowns (11): O’s (Gunnar Henderson); Guardians (Brayan Rocchio); Astros (Jeremy Pena); Royals (Bobby Witt Jr); Yankees (Anthony Volpe); D’backs (Geraldo Perdomo); Reds (Elly de la Cruz); Rockies (Ezequiel Tovar); Marlins (Xavier Edwards); Cards (Masyn Wynn) and Nats (CJ Edwards).

Teams not interested because of high cost or low contention (4): White Sox (Colson Montgomery); Rays (Taylor Walls); Brewers (Joey Ortiz) and Pirates (Isiah Kiner-Falefa).

List of teams that might show interest in Bo as FA, November 1, 2025 (7): Braves (Orlando Arcia); Red Sox (Trevor Story); M’s (JP Crawford); Tigers (Trey Sweeney / Javy Baez); Angels (Zach Neto); Dodgers (Mookie Betts) and A’s (Jacob Wilson).

Begin with the Braves, who have been filling in with Arcia, while waiting for their next star shortstop to emerge. Bichette lives near the Braves spring training facility in Florida and GM Alex Anthopoulos is not afraid of poaching from his former team.

The Red Sox have their man, Story, under contract for another year, but when Bogaerts was still in Beantown, the former Rockies star was willing to shift to second base. He could do it again for the final year of his Bosox deal. Bo has had success at Fenway Park and may end up playing with Vlad, again.

The M’s have recently seemed a mirror-image of the Blue Jays, over the past several years, a team built on a deep rotation while struggling to produce runs. The young M’s rotation will be there for a while. The Pacific Northwest loves Bo and the M’s are ready to move on from Crawford.

Regrettably, the Tigers are stuck with the Baez albatross contract and unless they can get rid of it or Javy consents to move to second base, when Gleyber Torres leaves, then they are unlikely to be in on Bo.

Angels’ GM Perry Minasian grew up in the Jays system watching the development of a young Bo so he knows. Minasian’s manager Ron Washington is the “infield whisperer” that would likely get the maximum out of Bichette. Oh, and, yes, one more connection. Ryan Goins is the Angels infield coach.

The ridiculous Dodgers have the best player in the game playing shortstop, but Betts would easily move back to the outfield if the right shortstop entered the scene. They can afford him.

The A’s are playing in Sacramento, but when they signed Luis Severino as a free agent, it signalled that someone in MLB was forcing them to play with the big boys or suffer the consequences. If a talented young A’s show, in 2025, that they are borderline wildcard contenders, moving forward, they may show interest in Bichette as a centrepiece, preparing for their move to Vegas.

In the meantime, there is every reason to believe that, given good health, Bichette is in for a rebound season for the Jays as he anticipates his big payday ahead.

MLB Shortstops … Age - Service - ’25 $$ - Yrs. Left

American League

Bo Bichette (Tor) … 27 - 5.063 - $17.6M - 1

Gunnar Henderson (Blt) … 24 - 2.036 - Control - 4

Trevor Story (Bos) … 32 - 9.000 - $22.5M - 2(+1)

C. Montgomery (CWS) … 23 - 0.000 - Control - 6

Brayan Rocchio (Clv) … 24 - 1.037 - Control - 5

Trey Sweeney (Det) … 25 - 0.045 - Control - 6

*Javy Baez (Det) … 32 - 9.084 - $25.0M - 3

Jeremy Pena (Hou) … 27 - 3.000 - $4.1M - 3

Bobby Witt Jr (KC) … 25 - 3.000 - $7.7M - 7

Zach Neto (LAA) … 24 - 1.170 - Control - 5

Carlos Correa (Min) … 30 - 9.119 - $37.3M - 3(+3)

Anthony Volpe (NYY) … 24 - 2.000 - Control - 4

J.P. Crawford (Sea) … 30 - 6.163 - $11.0M - 2

Taylor Walls (TB) … 28 - 3.092 - $2.45M - 3

Jacob Wilson (Sac) … 23 - 0.073 - Control - 6

Corey Seager (Tex) … 31 - 9.032 - $32.5M - 7

National League

Geraldo Perdomo (Arz) … 25 - 3.015 - $2.55M - 5(+1)

Orlando Arcia (Atl) … 31 - 7.114 - $2.0M - 1(+1)

Dansby Swanson (ChC) … 31 - 8.047 - $28.0M - 5

Elly de la Cruz (Cin) … 23 - 1.118 - Control - 5

Ezequiel Tovar (Col) … 24 - 2.014 - $4.2M - 6(+1)

Mookie Betts (LAD) … 32 - 10.078 - $30.4M - 7

Xavier Edwards (Mia) … 25 - 1.034 - Control - 5

Joey Ortiz (Mil) … 26 - 1.030 - Control - 5

Francisco Lindor (NYM) … 31 9.113 $34.1M 7

Trea Turner (Phi) … 32 - 8.135 - $27.3M - 7

Isiah Kiner-Falefa (Pit) … 30 - 7.000 - $7.5M - 1

Xander Bogaerts (SD) … 32 - 11.042 - $25.5M - 7

Willy Adames (SF) … 29 - 6.105 - $13.1M - 7

Masyn Wynn (StL) … 23 - 1.045 - Control -5

CJ Abrams (Wsh) … 24 - 2.130 - Control - 4