Bo Bichette Rumors Heating Up For Phillies

Philly sports fans desperately need a win. After the Eagles fizzled out, the city needs some good news. Many have turned to the Phillies in hopes of that good news. And the thing Phillies fans are dreaming about is landing Free agent Bo Bichette. Lucky for them, there is plenty of fuel being dumped on that fire right now.

It started with a Jon Heyman tweet linking the All-Star to Philly. Matt Gelb dialed that up to 11 when he reported that not only did the Phillies schedule a meeting with Bichette, but that they were serious about pursuing him. Many assumed the interest was more about pressuring JT Realmuto than actually signing Bichette. But Gelb came onto the Fanatic airwaves and told us the interest in Bichette was real, and not just a smoke screen.

Since then, media members seemed to get the memo. Want people to like your Tweet? Feed the Phillies fans positive news about a potential Bo Bichette deal. And Phillies fans have been well-sated with a steady stream of reports and clips suggesting that the deal will happen.

A big talking point around the rumors has been the relationship between Bichette and Phillies' new Bench Coach, Don Mattingly. Many originally laughed off the idea that Bichette would come here for Mattingly. They are probably right. Players mostly go where they get the best deal.

That does not mean there is nothing there, though. There is significant smoke to the idea that Bichette loves working with Mattingly. Including this clip from MLB Network, where Harold Reynolds talked about how great the relationship between the two is.

Again, he won't give the Phillies a discount to play with Don. But if all things are equal, could it be a tie breaker? There are more factors to these talks than just money. If the money is similar, things like culture fit absolutely factor in. There was similar talk between Kevin Long and Kyle Schwarber back in the day. Comfort matters, and Bichette is clearly comfortable working with Mattingly.

Matt Gelb has been on this story better than anyone. It was his story that really broke the door open. But a story he published on Jan 13th titled "As Phillies’ Bo Bichette pursuit gains momentum, their openness to longer deals could win out" should get Phillies fans even more excited. Here is a small snippet.

"The Phillies might be the only team willing to extend to six, seven, or eight years to sign Bichette."

There is far more in the full story. It is well worth a read. But the crux is the idea that the Phillies are proven to be willing to add more years to win out on deals.

That is how they landed Bryce Harper, how they landed Trea Turner, and how they brought back Aaron Nola. That extra year matters to players. We have even seen players sacrifice AAV for the security of a longer contract.

What Gelb says matters. He is as tuned in on what's going on with the Phillies as anyone in baseball. So if he is saying this is real, you can trust that the Phillies have a real chance to land Bichette

Ken Rosenthal is another guy who, if he says something, you can trust it. Well he went on Foul Territory and said that he sees the Phillies as the favorite to land Bo Bichette

He is not the first person to say the Phillies are the favorite. But he might be the most significant National name to come out and say it.

Rosenthal has also echoed the idea that this is not just about leveraging Realmuto. The Phillies have a real interest in landing Bo Bichette.

Obviously, they still need to seal it. But there is enough smoke to think this is real. The Phillies are in on Bo Bichette. We have seen that when the Phillies really hone in on a player, they tend to close it. John Middleton wants his damn trophy back and is willing to pony up. If he is convinced Bichette is the missing piece, he might do what it takes the get it done.

Bichette has a lot of suitors. Nothing is guarenteed. But there is a real chance Bo Bichette wears Red Pinstripes next season.