Bo Bichette's Mets Career is Off to Boo-Worthy Start
One of the biggest moves of the offseason for the New York Mets was signing Bo Bichette. He agreed to a three-year, $126 million deal and looked to be a major offensive force for the Mets. It took just three games for Mets faithful to rain boos down on their new infielder.
Bo Bichette unsurprised by Mets fans' frustration
Some baseball players expect boos when they're not playing well, especially in a big city like New York. When Yankees fans shockingly booed the MVP Aaron Judge, he said he would've booed himself. Bo Bichette said he's surprised it took Mets fans three games to start jeering.
"If anything, I thought it took too long," Bichette said after a crushing 4-3, extra-inning loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates. "I thought my at-bats were terrible, too." Bichette came up empty midway through the game with a chance to take the lead, striking out on three pitches without coming close.
Bichette has gone 1-for-14 with eight strikeouts in his first three games with the Mets. That's particularly alarming given his hitter profile. He had an 86th-percentile strikeout rate in 2025, but he struck out more than half the time against the Pirates.
Carlos Mendoza reacts
Manager Carlos Mendoza was probably thrilled to get Bo Bichette in his lineup after his signing in the offseason. He was one of the best contact players in the sport, and he was supposed to help revamp the Mets' lineup after losing Pete Alonso. It hasn't worked out, but Mendoza isn't terribly worried.
"I think he's getting good pitches early in counts and then they're making him chase, especially at the top of the zone," the Mets manager said. "He's going to swing. He's going to go out there and he's going to hack. He's a good hitter."
That may sound like an insult, but it's not. Swinging at everything is often not a good strategy, but Bichette is elite at putting bat to ball. As mentioned, he typically doesn't strike out much. He also doesn't walk alot, but he's a career .293 hitter, which is well above the average batting average across baseball.
Read More
That's who Bo Bichette is
Bo Bichette swings, fouls pitches off, and gets hits. So far, he's still swinging for the Mets, but the contact swings are few and far between. He's missing a lot, which could just be poor timing. That plagues hitters early all the time, even after using Spring Training to get everything right.
"I think I just got to be more committed, more committed in the process," Bichette said. "Definitely find myself trying to have, like, a moment out there. So I just got to get back to being me." That would be a player hitting much better than .071 this year.
"It's early, but also there hasn't been much to be happy about what I've done so far," Bichette continued. "We can talk about it being early, but we'll figure some things out." Three games and 14 at-bats is a tiny sample size, which is especially troublesome for analysis in baseball.
Bichette is also adjusting to a new position, which may be taxing him. His defense has suffered a bit, too. Next up for Bichette and the Mets is a road trip, and perhaps being away from the pressure of New York will help, but the infielder still needs to get it down.
"Maybe," Bichette said. "But I got to figure out how to hit here anyways." In 2025, he hit .322 at home in Toronto and .301 on the road, so he's certainly capable of hitting in any ballpark. He just has to start doing it soon, or Mets fans will continue to let him hear it.
