It's not the money, per se; it's why he would be too much money for the Braves Katie Stratman-Imagn Images

All-Star Shortstop Deemed Not a Fit for Atlanta Braves

Originally posted on Atlanta Braves on SI
By Brooks Crew | Last updated Oct 18, 2025 7:00 AM ET

As the 2025 season drew to a close, it seemed like the Atlanta Braves had finally found a stopgap for their shortstop position in Ha-Seong Kim. Unfortunately for the team, Kim has a player option for 2026 and is likely to decline it to hit the open market.

Speculation has flown as to how the Braves will fill the shortstop spot on their roster, with Braves color commentator CJ Nitkowski even alluding to a chance for one of two World Series MVPs in a video posted on X.

In his video, Nitkowski mentioned a variety of shortstop candidates, but there’s one popular theory in particular that he doesn’t think is viable for the team: Bo Bichette.

The Blue Jays’ shortstop has been strong in his six-season career. In 2025, he batted an impressive .311 with 18 home runs and 94 RBIs, good for an .840 OPS. Defensively, though, he’s not the strongest, with a career .966 fielding percentage, surrendering 84 errors on 1563 total chances.

Nitkowski argues that, contrary to typical Braves money management, it’s not the size of the contract that’s a turn-off for the team; rather, they’re more concerned with finding a long-term solution, and Bichette isn’t it, especially defensively.

A .966 fielding percentage may seem good for a shortstop, but he had 24 errors in 2021 and 23 in 2022, with an additional 12 in 2025. Bichette struggles immensely pretty much everywhere but the plate, and he’s most certainly not up to the Braves’ standard for middle-infield defense.

The Braves’ color commentator maintains that it’s really not about the money; the Braves, he felt, would take on a larger contract to a player like Corey Seager if the chance arose, as he’s much more of a long-term solution, with a contract lasting through 2031. Seager was the first shortstop that Nitkowski suggested in his rundown.

Simply put, Bichette isn’t a viable long-term solution for the Braves, so it wouldn’t make sense for the Braves to dole out the high-paying contract Bichette is expecting.