Bo Bichette defensive gem will quiet all the NY Mets haters waiting for every error

Two games, two different thoughts on Bo Bichette at third base. Game one of New York Mets spring training included Bichette getting blamed for a slightly off-target throw. If you didn’t actually see it, you’d guess he went full Chuck Knoblauch.

On Tuesday, he flashed some flesh with a barehanded grab while moving to his left, ironically into a position more suited for the shortstop. An impressive defensive gem, it was the first acknowledgement that maybe this can work.

The jury has been presented with two pieces of evidence. Is Bichette The Hindenburg of third basemen or are the instincts there to shut up his haters for good?

The People vs. Bo Bichette has new some new evidence

Bichette has all of the makings of becoming a long-debated free agent signing by the Mets. Because it is the Mets he ended up with, errors he makes both on the scoresheet will be headline news for other fanbases. Any mental lapses are going to be unneeded highlights clipped from someone’s cell phone.

What’s silly is the mistake would have been to sign Bichette to be a shortstop. He is a proven weak defender there. A position change was needed. The Mets took a calculated risk no doubt.

Second base was the assumed more appropriate place for him to play. The Toronto Blue Jays moved him there in the playoffs after returning from the IL. Third base isn’t an easy position to play by any stretch. There are bound to be plenty of awkward moments, off-target throws, and maybe a moment or two early in the year where Bichette and Francisco Lindor cross each other up.

Bichette’s latest barehanded snag showed some strong instincts and a lack of fear. It was a play we’ll all forget the next time he does anything notable. Still, it was an important one to turn the page on the discourse surrounding the E3 he was one half of yet not even remotely responsible for.

It’ll be ugly at times and beautiful at other moments. An experienced shortstop like him with athleticism is bound to make some routine plays look spectacular while booting some more routine ones. At the end of the year, we’re probably going to be saying some of the same things about Bichette at third base that people have been saying about Derek Jeter at shortstop. The metrics won’t favor Bichette. Watching him often, you’ll know he’s capable of defying his poor OAA.