Blue Jays insider lays out why Bo Bichette's decision delay is tied to one free agent

Toronto Blue Jays insider Ben Nicholson-Smith believes Bo Bichette won't make his free agency decision anytime soon. Nicholson-Smith knows Bichette is among the best free agents, but he sees multiple MLB teams, including the Blue Jays, have their primary focus on Kyle Tucker.

Nicholson-Smith is the baseball editor for Sportsnet, focusing extensively on the Blue Jays. He shared the update about Bichette's market on Wednesday's episode of "The JD Bunkis Podcast."

"I'm not under the impression that anything is close on (Kyle) Tucker," Nicholson-Smith said (Timestamp: 1:31:13). "By extension, that might mean that Bo has to wait as well, because a lot of the teams that are going to be in on Tucker are probably going to be in on Bo. So, I could see it unfolding that way where we have to be a little bit more patient."

Nicholson Smith acknowledged that the Blue Jays have been busy in the free agent market, having bolstered their rotation with Dylan Cease and Cody Ponce. However, he doesn't think they are looking to make a quick decision on Bichette or Tucker.

Multiple projections have Tucker earning a deal worth around $400 million. Meanwhile, the projections for Bichette are all over the place. While some predict a deal Marcus Semien bagged, others believe Bichette could get a deal like what Xander Bogaerts got from the Padres.

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Blue Jays insider shares update on Kyle Tucker

In the same conversation with JD Bunkis on his podcast, Ben Nicholson-Smith also spoke about Kyle Tucker. The insider believes certain factors will help the Blue Jays and Yankees to influence Tucker's decision.

"We all know Tucker is from Tampa," Nicholson-Smith said (Timestamp: 1:30:48). "He went to high school a few miles south of where the Yankees train. That's also really close to where the Blue Jays train. Stands to reason those two teams are probably going to invite Kyle Tucker, and I'm not reporting this, for a visit."

"You know, John Schneider lives right there. 'Come on over, meet the manager, have a tour.' That would, as a speculation, be a logical thing for the Blue Jays to do and a logical thing for the Yankees to do," he added.

Kyle Tucker is a four-time All-Star outfielder who won the 2022 World Series with the Houston Astros. Tucker joined the Chicago Cubs before his walk year via trade that sent Isaac Paredes, Hayden Wesneski and prospect Cam Smith to Houston.