Mets best free agent fit may not be an obvious choice

The New York Mets have a lot of options to upgrade their roster this winter, but adding Bo Bichette may be the most creative way to solve their various issues.

Sep 2, 2025; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette (11) at bat in the seventh inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images | Katie Stratman-Imagn Images

The New York Mets have a lot of work to do to improve their team this winter, with simply retaining Pete Alonso and Edwin Diaz not being enough to solve the issues that presented themselves during their second half erosion. Although most of the attention is being paid to the Mets' run prevention issues, having a more consistent offense would also help in 2026.

"I think we're going to have to be open-minded on our position player grouping so that we can improve our run prevention."

David Stearns talks about how the Mets can improve their run prevention this offseason: pic.twitter.com/nb8TJftZqu

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 29, 2025

While the Mets' core hitters were incredibly valuable, the lineup experienced a significant drop-off in terms of production from the five through nine spots. Young players like Brett Baty, Francisco Alvarez and Mark Vientos had their moments, but their lack of consistency made the group too feast or famine, requiring more depth to put less pressure on the younger guys to carry the offense.

Read More: Former MLB executive places Mets near top of non-playoff team rankings

Lengthening the Mets' lineup is important and with Juan Soto, Francisco Lindor and Brandon Nimmo locked into three key positions, there aren't many opportunities to match their needs with available free agents. One intriguing possibility, however, would be trying to convince Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette to change positions to join the team.

Bo Bichette: RBI Machine! pic.twitter.com/gIzGhQZIeE

— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) August 28, 2025

After a rough 2024, Bichette bounced back with a monster offensive season in 2025, batting .311 with 18 home runs, 94 RBI and an .840 OPS in 139 games. A late season knee injury denied Bichette a chance to lead the majors in hits for a third time, but he still finished with 181 for the season, marking the fourth time in the past five years he has recorded at least 175 hits in a year.

Why Bo Bichette Is A Perfect Fit For The Mets' Offseason Plans

The Mets' lineup has been in need of a bit more contact and live drive ability as some of the team's top power bats are too inconsistent. Bichette can add that dimension in spades, and his right-handed bat can provide balance to a top of the lineup that is extremely left-handed outside of Alonso, who the Mets will likely look to retain as well.

Will Pete Alonso be back with the #Mets in 2026? @AnthonyMcCarron thinks Steve Cohen could make it happen. Find out why and listen to more of our #MLB conversation on my podcast here: https://t.co/VkZ9giIikq pic.twitter.com/ZMr4FCnPWf

— Mike Phillips (@MPhillips331) October 5, 2025

Adding a guy like Bichette also gives the Mets another hitter in his prime, as the shortstop will turn 28 in March. This would allow the Mets to add another core piece whose timeline matches up more with the prime of Juan Soto, which isn't the case for the team's other core hitters as Alonso, Lindor and Nimmo are all 30 or older.

The challenge here may be to convince Bichette to move off of shortstop, which is occupied by Lindor for the long haul. The obvious move would be to shift Bichette to second base, where his defense may play better after a few years of declining defensive metrics at shortstop, but it isn't unprecedented for teams to offer players more money to move to another position.

Another former Blue Jay shortstop, Marcus Semien, took a huge contract from the Texas Rangers to play second base (which he played in Toronto) while Corey Seager signed to play shortstop. The Mets also explored this idea with Carlos Correa back in 2023, when Cohen was prepared to hand him $300 million to move to third base before a bad medical report squashed the deal (Correa has since moved to third upon rejoining the Houston Astros at this year's trade deadline).

Could Jett Williams Be a Trade Piece if Bichette Becomes a Met?

If the Mets can get Bichette to sign and play him at second, it would open more possibilities to improve their roster by using top prospect Jett Williams as a trade chip. Williams is rated among the Top 100 prospects in the game across various scouting services, but his best positions are either second base or center field, the latter of which will likely be earmarked for Carson Benge.

While there is every chance Williams turns out to be a hitting machine, his small frame makes him a physical outlier compared to the average second baseman. The Mets are also in a win-now window and don't want to waste Soto's prime years, so it may be a smarter bet to simply sign Bichette instead of hoping Williams offers a reasonable facsimile of Bichette's production by 2029.

Using Williams as a trade piece could open up more possibilities for the Mets to trade for a front-line starting pitcher, which may be more preferable to throwing money at the free agent class. The top free agent pitcher is Framber Valdez, who has a big game reputation but a lot of mileage on his arm at age 31, while going 3-7 with a 5.20 ERA after the All-Star break as Houston faded out of the postseason picture.

There are other options in free agency like Michael King, Ranger Suarez and Dylan Cease, but each come with their own question marks while likely commanding huge money. The trade market offers some more intriguing possibilities, with Mitch Keller, Luis Castillo and Sandy Alcantara potentially available in the offseason to help provide more innings and certainty to the Mets' rotation.

The Mets likely wouldn't need to use Williams to part with one of those pitchers, but he could be a key piece if David Stearns tries to engage the Detroit Tigers about their willingness to shop Tarik Skubal over the winter. Skubal has only one more year left in Detroit before free agency, and the Tigers have been unsuccessful in negotiating a contract extension so far. This raises the possibility that they would entertain trade offers to get maximum value for Skubal, rather than risk watching him walk in the winter of 2026-27 for draft pick compensation.

New York could put together a compelling package to get them to the table of Skubal negotiations, with Williams and Jonah Tong serving as co-headliners, offering the Tigers a pair of Top 50 prospects in a similar haul to what the Chicago White Sox got for Garrett Crochet. The deal could also include additional big league pieces, such as David Peterson and one of the club's current young infielders like Mark Vientos, with the Mets likely looking to hold onto Benge and Nolan McLean at all costs.

Even if the Mets can't pull off a Skubal deal, having Williams available as a trade chip could give Stearns more possibilities to address needs on his roster if surprise opportunities emerge for deals at the Winter Meetings. The current plan right now is for Williams to become the Mets' future second baseman, but signing Bo Bichette could give the Mets a lot more avenues to get better both now and in the future.