The New York Yankees must tread carefully when it comes to potentially signing Bo Bichette.
So the New York Yankees are reportedly interested in free-agent infielder Bo Bichette, who just spent 2025 terrorizing the Yankees as a member of the Toronto Blue Jays.
But does this actually make sense for New York at all?
Bichette is likely seeking a contract worth in the neighborhood of $200 million and is open to moving to second base because he is a terrible defender at shortstop.
That means if the Yankees do sign Bichette, they would probably trade Jazz Chisholm, which lines up with Brian Cashman's statement earlier this offseason that New York was too left-handed heavy and that the team was open to "challenge trades" on some of its sluggers.
Chisholm has just one year remaining on his contract, and the chances of the Yanks actually re-signing him seem relatively slim. But while going from Chisholm to Bichette would make the Yankees better offensively, people are ignoring the defensive impact.
Not only that, but if New York signs Bichette, that probably means Cody Bellinger is a goner, because it seems very difficult to imagine the Yankees inking two players to $200 million deals this offseason.
Bo Bichette. Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images.Essentially, you would be swapping out Chisholm and Bellinger for Bichette and Jasson Dominguez, which would cause all sorts of disaster in the field.
Remember: a major reason why New York fell to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series two years ago was because of its pitiful defense. Why would the Yanks want to relive that again?
Bichette simply does not make sense to me. Not when you consider all of the ramifications that would manifest courtesy of his addition.
The Yankees need to re-sign Bellinger and acquire a starting pitcher at this point. They probably aren't bringing in another significant bat this winter. We have to resign ourselves to that fact. But if they are able to retain Bellinger and swing a trade for Freddy Peralta, that's a good offseason.
Bichette does not move the needle for New York when you take into account all of the wheels that would turn once he puts pen to paper. He's a big name and he rakes at the plate, but if anything, landing Bichette could actually make the Yankees worse.