Add The New York Post on Google CHICAGO — Bo Bichette doesn’t want to jinx it, but he’s among the only Mets regulars who has managed to stay on the field all season.
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It’s an injury list that has included at various points Juan Soto (twice), Jorge Polanco (twice), Francisco Lindor, Luis Robert Jr., Marcus Semien, Francisco Alvarez and Mark Vientos.
The Mets were set to play their 129th game this season Saturday night, and Bichette had appeared in all but one of them.
It’s the kind of durability he can cautiously appreciate after missing significant action the previous two seasons.
“Part of it is luck, right?” Bichette said before the Mets faced the White Sox at Rate Field. “I think I did a good job of getting strong this offseason. I didn’t have much of a choice after injuries two years ago and then last year with the knee. But I think I did a good job to get strong enough to get a whole season.”
New York Mets third baseman Bo Bichette (19) hits a home run during the fifth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026, in Chicago, Illinois. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect It probably hasn’t hurt that Bichette, 28, switched to a physically less demanding position at third base after playing shortstop his first seven seasons in the major leagues.
Even so, Bichette played shortstop for much of the two-month stretch Lindor was sidelined by a calf strain.
Last season with the Blue Jays, Bichette sustained a knee injury in a home plate collision and missed the final month of the regular season and most of the postseason before returning for the World Series.
In 2024, a calf strain limited Bichette to appearing in 81 games.
“The key to it is make sure you give it enough time because with the calf just walking puts stress on it,” Bichette said. “That is why it’s the toughest injury to come back from, I think.”
The Mets are seeing their best version of Bichette in August.
He entered play with a .947 OPS for the month and on Friday hit his 13th home run of the season.
With the surge, Bichette owned a .706 OPS for the season, the highest it has been all year.
It coincided largely with the Mets playing their best baseball of 2026, with 11 victories in 16 games entering play.
“I’m just focused on finishing strong,” Bichette said. “The competitor in me sees the opportunity for me to still have a good year and I am still focused on that too, but I just want to have a strong finish. In a way I am proud of my ability to come back from a tough couple of months to start the season. Also knowing that a tough couple of months doesn’t make your season.”
New York Mets third baseman Bo Bichette (19) pumps his chest after hitting a home run during the fifth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field in Chicago, Illinois, on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect As for the Mets’ improved play, Bichette said the Aug. 3 trade deadline — at which point several veteran players were dealt to other teams — served as a reset point.
“The burden of having a bad season was kind of lifted when the trade deadline happened,” Bichette said. “It gave the guys ability to just go out there and try to become better baseball players. Go out there and just try to win and it’s been real fun.”
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Bichette, who can opt out from his three-year contract worth $126 million after the season, said it’s still too early to say which direction he will head.
But it’s clear Bichette is thinking strongly about a possible return next year.
“I think there are a lot of positive things,” Bichette said. “I am having a really good time right here right now. There are a lot of really good young players that make it fun to come here and a lot of really good players that have been around, so I am enjoying my time here.”
