Bo Bichette a Cubs Free Agent Target Heading Into 2026?

The only reason I’m giving this any extra thought is because there have been rumblings in the past that the Chicago Cubs were interested in Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette. The 27-year-old is headed to free agency once the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers concludes and in a recent top-50 free agents list released by The Athletic’s Jim Bowden, the Cubs are listed as one of the best fits for Bichette.

I still don’t buy the connection too much, but the prospect of going after Bichette sure is intriguing. We’re talking about a guy who has hit every year in his career and the one outlier was in 2024, when Bichette only played in 81 games, missing half the season because of a calf strain and then broken finger.

In 2025, Bichette returned to action and posted a 134 wRC+, a career-best with the Blue Jays. The right-handed hitter had a slash line of .311/.357/.483, with 18 home runs in 138 games. He did miss the last three weeks of the regular season after suffering a left knee sprain and wasn’t available until Game 1 of the World Series on Oct. 24.

Despite the late-season injury, Bichette restored his value with a great season at the plate and proved that 2024 was a fluke. His bat has been pretty damn otherwise since breaking into the big leagues back in 2019.

Bo Bichette year-by-year stats
2019: .311/.358/.571, 143 wRC+ (46 games)
2020: .301/.328/.512, 120 wRC+ (29 games)
2021: .298/.343/.484, 122 wRC+ (159 games)
2022: .290/.333/.469, 129 wRC+ (159 games)
2023: .306/.339/.475, 124 wRC+ (135 games)
2024: .225/.277/.322, 70 wRC+ (81 games)
2025: .311/.357/.483, 134 wRC+ (139 games)

His career high in home runs in a single season is 29, back in 2021, but now Bichette has settled into the 20-25 home run range per season. The infielder also swiped 25 bases in 2021, but stealing bases isn’t really part of his game anymore as Bichette has 14 total steals in the past three years.

You’re getting a quality bat from Bichette with some pop, high average and lots of contact. But here’s the part I struggle with in seeing how he could be a fit with the Cubs. For starters, the Cubs have Dansby Swanson at shortstop and he’s under contract for four more years. Swanson also has a full no-trade clause. Regardless of Swanson’s presence on the roster, it’s not like you really want Bichette playing shortstop.

Bichette has been one of the worst defensive shortstops in MLB and while his offense was great in 2025, the defense resulted in Bichette recording -12 defensive runs saved, last among all shortstops. His defense also graded out terribly in outs above average as Bichette had -13 OAA, also last among MLB shortstops.

Bichette ranks 38th out of 41 shortstops with -33 OAA since the 2019 season.

If the Cubs do pursue Bichette this offseason, then they’ll 100% move him to third base. Yet, I have a hard time seeing the front office and coaching staff making that drastic of a change to their philosophy. We’ve seen how they’ve built the roster the past few years as the Cubs have jumped back into their competitive window. There’s been a priority on defense and while Matt Shaw’s rookie season didn’t exactly jump off the page even with his second-half success, his defense was incredible.

Nico Hoerner has been an elite defender for several years at second base, where Bichette has been moved to by the Blue Jays in his return to the lineup during the World Series. I guess that could be a future opening as Hoerner is only signed through the 2026 season. But again, who knows how Bichette would perform at second base or third?

The biggest reason I just can’t see the Cubs making an actual effort to sign Bichette is that he most likely will get paid as a shortstop this offseason. That means more money than the typical third baseman or second baseman, where he would slot in for the Cubs.

Bowden predicted a seven-year, $189 million contract for Bichette in free agency.

It’s definitely intriguing. I mean, stick Bichette at third base and trade Shaw for an ace this offseason? Maybe? I wouldn’t lose sleep over this possibility, but the previous rumors surrounding Bichette and the Cubs at least gives you something to think about as we get closer to free agency.

2023 Bo Bichette and Cubs Rumors

So, as always, take these offseason rumors with a grain of salt, and I’m really only writing this because I personally know the first person who hinted at this possibility and trust him to know he’s not making things up just to make them up.

Pinwheels And Ivy Podcast co-host, Kevin Fiddler, has been hearing that the Chicago Cubs are interested in trading for Toronto Blue Jays infielder Bo Bichette, with the intent of moving the two-time All-Star shortstop over to third base.

This seemingly came out of left field, but this rumor is gaining steam.

A year ago, the Cubs were in on the big free agent shortstop class and eventually signed Dansby Swanson to a seven-year, $177 million contract. With that addition to the club, the Cubs were then able to shift Nico Hoerner over to second base and the duo entered the 2023 season with high expectations. The middle infield combo lived up to the hype and ultimately were rewarded with a gold glove at their respective position.

2022 Bo Bichette and Cubs Rumors

As for the Cubs’ previous interest in Bichette, MLB reporter Jon Morosi said in Dec. 2022, that if the Cubs missed out on the big-name shortstops at the time, then Bichette could get on their radar.

Via Audacy.

 Morosi also had an outside-the-box idea on how Chicago could pivot.

He believes the Cubs could eventually pursue Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette on the trade market. Bichette is under team control through 2025.

“Nobody has told me, ‘Hey, Bo Bichette is available,’ but like a lot of things in this industry, if you are getting closer to free agency and there’s no word of there being a (contract) extension in place, people start to ask, people start to wonder,” Morosi said. “I don’t think the Jays are there yet, but if both of those shortstops, Correa and Swanson, don’t go to the Cubs and the Cubs are very, very motivated to put a ton of their prospect value into a deal … I just believe there are some scenarios – not now – but later in the offseason in which the Jays would at least entertain the possibility of a Bo Bichette trade.”

But of course, the Cubs did sign Swanson, so the need for a shortstop is no longer present and the team is obviously well off with their stellar defense up the middle. However, the Cubs would definitely love an upgrade at third base.