"Bo Bichette spurning the Phillies for the NL East rival New York Mets was akin to a gut punch for the NL East champions. A two-time All-Star shortstop with the Toronto Blue Jays, Bichette agreed last week with the Mets to a $126 million, three-year contract that left the Phillies reeling. Philadelphia believed the former batting champion was on the brink of joining a potent lineup that already included Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper and Trea Turner."
""It's a gut punch," Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said Tuesday. "You feel it. That day you are very upset, I guess is the way to say it. You have to pick yourself up and shake it off. You can't just wallow in what took place." The Phillies had a productive meeting with Bichette early last week and were expected to prepare a long-term deal only for the infielder to head instead to New York."
""I can't say that we ever thought it was done," Dombrowski said. "There's a difference. We thought we were very close to having a deal done. We thought it was going to happen. But it wasn't done." Dombrowski said the Phillies and Bichette never signed a letter of agreement that would have locked the infielder into a deal, pending a successful physical."
Bo Bichette chose the New York Mets over the Philadelphia Phillies, agreeing to a $126 million, three-year contract after leaving the Toronto Blue Jays. The Phillies had a productive meeting and believed they were close to finalizing a long-term deal, but no letter of agreement was signed to lock Bichette in pending a physical. Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski described the loss as a "gut punch" and said the club matched the requested numbers while still working through nuances. Dombrowski also said the Dodgers' signing of Kyle Tucker may have altered free-agent market dynamics.
Read at ESPN.com
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