Like any seven-year marriage, Bo Bichette and the Toronto Blue Jays had their ups and downs. But this past week, Bichette got the infamous ‘seven-year itch’ and filed for divorce from the Jays, signing a huge deal with the New York Mets.
On Wednesday, Blue Jays beat reporter Shi Davidi caught up with Bo in his crisp new blue and orange threads, and the shortstop-turned-second baseman-turned third baseman opened up on how his offseason led him to Queens.
A lot of conversations with teams, several good conversations. But with a lot of prayer and conversation with my family and my agents and even some friends, came to the conclusion that it was very obvious that I wanted to be a Met.
Make no mistake, it was also obvious that he wanted the outrageous $42 million annual stipend that came with the insane three-year, $126 million deal the Mets offered him.
Didn’t Bichette once say he wanted to finish his career with Vladdy & the Jays?
When Davidi asked him whatever happened to his previously stated goal of finishing his career with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and winning a World Series with the Toronto Blue Jays, Bichette had this to say:
Vladdy’s a brother for life, a friend for life, so, always love him and value our friendship.
The Blue Jays were in touch all off-season. They showed interest. But at the end of the day, it just became clear for me that this was the decision that I needed to make.
As for reflections of his career with the Jays, Bichette said, “I only have fond memories of my time with the Blue Jays. I only have fond memories of the fans. They supported me through so much. I remember my first at-bat in the (2025) World Series where they had my back and believed in me after not playing for that long.
“I was open to it… but (a return to Toronto) just didn’t pan out.”
On his final words to the fans of Toronto:
“Thank you for all the support. You guys mean a lot to me. Toronto will always be in my heart, and I guess I’ll see you guys in June.”
He was referring to his first and only appearance north of the border in the 2026 season, which will come in a three-game series when the Mets visit the Jays at Rogers Centre on June 29-31.
Unlike the not-so-fond greeting that former Maple Leaf Mitch Marner will receive on Friday upon his return to the city, Bichette will certainly be afforded a red-carpet warm reception from the Toronto fans.
In seven seasons with the Blue Jays, Bichette recorded a .294 career batting average with a .337 on-base percentage and an .806 OPS. He slugged 111 home runs and notched 437 RBIs. He was a two-time All-Star (2021, 2023).
