Alexander Wilson
The New York Mets got the version of Bo Bichette they paid for Tuesday, at least for a few swings.
Bichette blasted a pair of two-run homers against Washington, giving the Mets the exact kind of impact power they have been waiting on. The problem is the Mets still lost 9-6, and one loud night does not erase the bigger question sitting underneath his season.
When a player is on a three-year, $126 million deal, the standard changes. A two-homer game matters. The full offensive line matters a lot more.
Bichette still has work to do
Bichette is hitting .224/.277/.332 with five homers, a 74 wRC+, a .274 wOBA, a .107 ISO, and 0.3 WAR through 213 plate appearances. The Mets did not hand him a deal with a $42 million average annual value for production anywhere near that light.
The power night was encouraging because the Mets need that version to show up more often. Bichette can still drive mistakes, and when he gets the barrel out front, the swing can look like the old one in a hurry.
But the season has mostly been a grind. The on-base percentage is too low, the slugging has not been nearly loud enough, and the Mets are not getting enough bankable production from a hitter supposed to stabilize the lineup.
The contract makes every cold stretch louder
The Mets already made a major bet when they signed Bichette after missing on Kyle Tucker. They did not need him to be perfect, but they needed him to be safely above average. So far, he has not been that.
The contract becomes the elephant in the room quickly. Expensive hitters are allowed to slump, but expensive hitters with below-average production become a daily conversation, especially on a Mets team already dealing with enough roster turbulence.
Tuesday showed why the gamble still has oxygen. Bichette can change a game with two swings, and the Mets do not have many players with that kind of immediate damage in them.
The next few weeks matter. If the power spike turns into a real adjustment, the contract conversation cools down quickly. If it becomes one good night in a sea of weak contact and empty at-bats, the Mets will be staring at a very uncomfortable problem before the summer even gets hot.
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