NY Mets coach has the resume to change Bo Bichette's reputation

How confident are the New York Mets that they’ll get enough from Bo Bichette as a third baseman? They’ll probably tell us they’re certain things will go well. They wouldn’t have signed him otherwise.

It does seem like there was a plan in place for such a move. One of the first major Mets decisions of the offseason came when they hired the coach whose job might be to assist Bichette better than anyone else into his transition over to third base.

Kai Correa was hired in mid-October to become the new Mets bench coach. A baseball nerd whose reputation has a lot to do with getting the most out of players defensively, he seems to be the one who’ll need to set aside time to help out Bichette. He has the page on his resume to prove it’s possible.

Mets bench coach Kai Correa can have a unique job when it comes to Bo Bichette

Correa is the one credited with helping J.D. Davis go from a slugger with no real position to a credible third baseman. During his time with the Mets, Davis played third base and left field but never yielded positive results.

This changed in 2023 during his one full year with the San Francisco Giants. Aided by Correa, he turned in a 5 OAA season. For a career -20 OAA player in his career, this is outstanding.

The success was short-lived, possibly because he no longer had the guidance of Correa to whisper into his ear. Davis fell off the map after leaving the Giants. Bichette won’t. Coming from the more difficult to play position of shortstop, he should at least have some greater chance of actually being able to make the position switch as opposed to a player like Davis who probably should’ve been a DH all along.

Naturally, Correa’s influence should assist Jorge Polanco in his move to first base as well. Mark Vientos can be a benefactor of any wisdom. Brett Baty still has a lot to learn even if he ends up playing more outfield than anyone originally predicted when the offseason began.

A bench coach’s role never seems to be as well-defined as it does with Correa. Their responsibilities seem to be more of an assistant to the manager rather than someone who actually imparts specific wisdom in an area of the game.

Just as hitting and pitching coaches get credited or blamed for their position groups, Correa will be uplifted or critiqued for how the Mets defense does. It’s a much different hire than the one of John Gibbons, the bench coach with managerial experience Correa will replace.