Bo Bichette isn't having the year he wanted with the Mets, but he's found something else instead.
The former Blue Jays star opened up to Will Sammon of The Athletic about becoming a veteran presence for New York's younger players.
Bichette has grown close with rookies A.J. Ewing and Carson Benge, stepping into a mentor role he says he wished he had himself early on.
"At times I wished I had a more established player along the way to kind of help me my first couple years," Bichette told The Athletic.
"Eventually Marcus came along and helped me a lot. I've always wanted to be ready to have an impact on guys going through their first year or two in the big leagues."
He's referring to Marcus Semien, who didn't arrive in Toronto until 2021, two full seasons after Bichette's 2019 debut.
That leaves an awkward gap. Teoscar Hernandez and Randal Grichuk were around during those first two years, but apparently weren't the mentors he needed.
Why New York is starting to feel like home
Bichette and Semien reconnected as teammates in Queens, a friendship that clearly still matters to him.
"As the season has gone on, the more time I spend here, the more I feel like a Met," Bichette said.
He signed a three-year, $126 million deal with New York after leaving Toronto following the 2025 season, one that includes a player option for each year.
Turning down $42 million next season seems extremely unlikely, even with the option technically available to him.
That's especially true given where his numbers sit right now. Bichette is hitting .264 with 14 home runs and 66 RBIs, the second-worst offensive season of his career.
Blue Jays fans still feel that production gap. Toronto sits second-to-last in the league in runs scored this season.
If Bichette were still in Toronto, his 64 runs scored would rank second on the team, behind only Kazuma Okamoto's 69.
It's a tough number to sit with for a fan base that's watched this offense struggle all year, wondering what one more real bat in that lineup might have meant.
Do the Blue Jays miss Bo Bichette's production more now than they expected to?
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