The New York Yankees have yet to make any significant moves in free agency, but they just watched as Dylan Cease signed a seven-year, $210 million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays.

Considering the Blue Jays beat the Yankees in the ALDS, it's never nice to see them making major improvements, even if Cease's deal is unquestionably risky.

There are some who feel that Toronto's decision to bag Cease on such an expensive contract could take the team out of the running to re-sign shortstop Bo Bichette, who is expected to land a deal in the neighborhood of $200 million himself.

New York has been pitched as a possible landing spot for Bichette if he departs Canada, but I'll just say this right now: it would be a terrible idea.

Yes, Bichette can hit. He slashed .311/.357/.483 with 18 home runs and 94 RBI over 628 plate appearances in 2025, and he is a lifetime .294 hitter with an .806 OPS.

The 27-year-old did have a nightmarish campaign in 2024 in which he registered a .598 OPS in 81 games, but that seems more like an outlier season due much in part to injuries than anything else.

Bichette is known for his bat, and with the Yankees needing some depth in their lineup, he seems like a natural fit, especially with 90 percent of the Bronx ready to run Anthony Volpe out of town.

But here's the catch with Bichette: he is one of the worst defensive shortstops in baseball, if not the worst.

The Orlando, Fl. native posted a minus-12 DRS and minus-13 OAA in 2025. Over the course of his career since entering the big leagues in 2019, Bichette has totaled a minus-19 DRS and minus-32 OAA. As you can see, he is absolutely terrible in the field.

Given all of the defensive issues the Yanks had during their World Series loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2024, do they really want to return to that well? Especially after making so much progress defensively this past season?

For as much as Yankees fans complained about Volpe's defense in 2025, he was still significantly better than Bichette, and he was playing through a torn labrum.

We know how much an offensive upgrade Bichette would comprise over Volpe. That is understandable. But the defensive dropoff would be so significant that it could ultimately sabotage New York's pitching staff, particularly someone like Max Fried who relies heavily on ground balls.

Plus, Bichette's expected contract is far too pricy for the overall production he would bring to the table. For as terrific as Bichette was offensively in 2025, he was just a 3.8 WAR player, indicating just how bad his defense really was.

There are much better ways for the Yankees to spend their money this winter, such as re-signing Cody Bellinger or acquiring a frontline starting pitcher.

Going out and splurging on Bichette would be a very poor use of resources.