Phillies coaching hire just threw a huge wrench into Dodgers' Bo Bichette pursuit

Apart from the reliever side of things, the free agent market has moved at a snail's pace this offseason. Kyle Tucker, Alex Bregman, Bo Bichette, and Cody Bellinger are the top position players all still floating around out there and fielding offers, though Bellinger may soon make his almost-inevitable return to the Yankees, who have reportedly made two formal offers.

Bichette could be the next domino to fall. The suitors just keep piling up: the incumbent Blue Jays, of course, but also the Cubs, Yankees, Red Sox, Dodgers, and most recently the Phillies, who Jon Heyman reported as having interest on Saturday.

And Philadelphia just made a coaching hire that could be mightily persuasive to Bichette. On Monday, they announced that they're adding should-be Hall of Famer and former Dodgers manager/coach Don Mattingly to their staff as a bench coach.

Mattingly received rave reviews from players for his work as a bench coach with Bichette's former Blue Jays, and getting him on their staff reads like a strong message to Bichette to follow him to Philly.

Phillies' Don Mattingly hire could ruin Dodgers' Bo Bichette chase if he follows former coach

Mattingly's presence at the 2025 World Series was a heartwarming, quiet storyline. In over 40 years in MLB as a player, manager, or coach, Mattingly had never been to the World Series up to that point. He got close with the Dodgers in 2013, the third in his five-year tenure as LA's manager, but they exited in the NLCS in seven games.

After Philadelphia's excruciating fall to the Dodgers in last year's NLDS, there was some talk that their World Series-winning window had closed. If it hadn't happened with Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, JT Realmuto, and Nick Castellanos in their respective primes, maybe it would never happen. But re-signing Kyle Schwarber was a huge win for them, and it still feels like they're due for a huge addition.

It could be Bichette. Turner has shortstop locked down, but Bichette has fielded interest as a shortstop, second baseman, and third baseman. His arm doesn't mesh well with third, but he'd certainly be an offensive upgrade at second from Bryson Stott.

The Phillies' desperation to finally perform as expected in the postseason to push them into giving Bichette a long-term deal that the Dodgers probably don't want to dole out. And now that they have Mattingly, they could look like the most attractive option to him.