First the Mets pivoted, then the Phillies did.
The Phillies are re-signing veteran catcher JT Realmuto to a three-year, $45 million deal, noti.group’s Jon Heyman confirmed.
It comes after the Mets swooped in and signed Bo Bichette away from their division rival Friday.
The Phillies had been targeting Bichette, and according to USA Today were closing in on a seven-year, $200 million deal, before the Mets signed him for three years and $126 million.
The Mets had been trying to sign Kyle Tucker before the Dodgers inked him to a four-year, $240 million deal Thursday night.
For now, Philadelphia will settle for bringing back Realmuto’s steadying presence behind the plate.
Realmuto, who has been with the Phillies for the past seven seasons, hit .257 last year with 12 home runs and 52 RBIs in 134 games.
The Phillies have re-signed slugger Kyle Schwarber, signed outfielder Adolis Garcia and brought in versatile reliever Brad Keller so far this offseason.
They lost starter Ranger Suarez to the Red Sox.
The Phillies finished 96-66 last season, winning the NL East by 13 games over the Mets before going out in four games to the eventual champion Dodgers in the NLDS.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
