The New York Mets sit at 34-41 as of June 19, and unless they quickly reverse course, the front office may have to consider selling parts of the team at the trade deadline.
New York will need to determine between now and the Aug. 3 trade deadline what players they could consider parting ways with if they decide to wave the white flag on this 2026 season.
While that process might be underway now, there are certainly a few players the Mets should keep to try to bounce back in 2027 if that’s the path David Stearns, the team’s president of baseball operations, wants to take.
As for who should stay, Jack Ramsey of Mets on SI noted that Bo Bichette should be one player that New York shouldn’t trade at the deadline.
“Bo Bichette is finally turning it around for the Mets, but anything short of a miracle second half would see his season still end below the majority of his career marks,” Ramsey wrote in a June 18 article.
“Odds are that the veteran infielder will not opt out of his absurd $43 million contract for next year, but that doesn’t mean the Mets won’t shop him heading into the trading deadline.”
New York Will Need Bo Bichette in 2027
Bichette is starting to turn things around with the Mets, and while the team isn’t performing well at the moment, the player is. The infielder has a .309 batting average with 38 hits, six homers, 24 RBIs and 20 runs scored in his last 30 games, per StatMuse.
With Bichette looking to have turned the corner, it might be easier to sell this deadline, but Ramsey believes the Mets’ offseason signing will be key to the team’s chances of competing in 2027.
“A strong lineup with good depth will be key to any 2027 Mets team, and Bichette would be key to that,” Ramsey added in his article. “Moving off his contract, likely needing to eat a significant portion of it, would be a major mistake.”
Bo Bichette Doesn’t Regret Mets Decision
Moreover, it appears that Bichette wants to be in New York, as he recently spoke about his offseason decision to spurn the Philadelphia Phillies in favor of the Mets.
“We had a lot of good talks. That’s a great team over there and obviously [Don Mattingly] being over there was enticing to me,” Bichette said (h/t SNY). “But great talks, great organization.”
“I thought it was an opportunity for sure, but there was definitely things that needed to be worked out for that to be a possibility. At the end of the day, I think it just became obvious to me that it was the right decision for me and my wife. It just became clear to me that the Mets was the right decision.”
It will be interesting to see whether Bichette decides not to opt out of his contract with the Mets and instead run it back to see if he can help the team in 2027. Furthermore, the uncertainty of whether there will be a 2027 season might also discourage him from opting out.
Nonetheless, if his last 30 games turn into great production for the remainder of the season, Bichette might be tempted to test the free agent waters again.
Mets Get Clear Bo Bichette Message Ahead of Trade Deadline