Bo Bichette is back at the center of baseball’s trade-value debate, and the reason is as blunt as it is uncomfortable for the team involved. The Mets would presumably love to move him if his season keeps sliding, but they may not be able to get much back for him without eating a substantial part of the contract.
That is the calculation around a player described as one of the most untradeable in MLB. Bichette has two years and $84 million left on his deal, with a $42 million average annual value that is tied for the fourth-highest in the majors. He is also only under contract through 2028 at the latest, and at the end of every year of the deal he has full control over whether he opts in or out.
This matters now because the numbers are not working. Bichette is carrying a.559 OPS this season, a figure that does little to ease concerns about paying top-five money through 2028 for weak current production. The contract was already difficult to move on paper; poor performance makes it even harder.
That is why Bichette has landed in a broader conversation about MLB trade value and the players clubs are least willing to take on. A deal like his asks another team to absorb premium salary and risk while hoping the bat rebounds. If it does not, the price tag becomes a burden rather than an asset.
The friction is obvious. The Mets, if they keep tumbling, would have reason to listen on almost any path forward. But the same contract that makes Bichette expensive also gives him leverage, and that makes the market thinner still. Unless the performance turns quickly, the more likely outcome is that New York has to swallow a large share of the money just to create an opening.
