Blue Jays: Bo Bichette not prioritized enough to stay in Toronto?

Everyone has an opinion on the Bo Bichette situation in Toronto. Why did he leave?

Obviously, no one is going to hide the fact that the Mets offered $42 million a year, which is a big factor in his departure for the Big Apple.

But behind that amount lies another factor: the player feels appreciated. Wanted.

Did Bichette decide he didn't want to continue his adventure in the Queen City because he didn't see the Blue Jays putting their best effort into signing him? Who knows.

Ben Nicholson-Smith, who answered questions from fans on Reddit, took the time to talk about the Bichette case. In his view, Bichette really wanted to consider staying in town. And the Blue Jays, at one point, wanted to keep him.

But beyond the money, it comes down to feeling wanted.

The Jays put $500 million in front of Vlad and he stayed. If they had made Bo a higher priority from the start, I think there would have been ways to keep him. – Ben Nicholson-Smith

Hi folks… Reddit AMA coming up at 1 p.m. ET… Join us here! https://t.co/qCh36gBs6C pic.twitter.com/314n4yzIHS

— Ben Nicholson-Smith (@bnicholsonsmith) January 30, 2026

BNS doesn't think there's a big rift between Bichette and the Blue Jays (friction along the way happens, he says) and he also believes that management prioritized Dylan Cease.

All of this combined means that Bichette will be playing in New York in 2026.

So it comes down to feeling appreciated. Sometimes it's easier to say yes to a club that offers you what you want (whether it's the Mets… or the Phillies) when you haven't been negotiating with the bosses for years.

Does that cover the whole story? Probably not. But it's all interesting.

This content was created with the help of AI.