The first decision of a critical Mets offseason was not their own to make, but it is one that will have significant ripple effects: 

Bo Bichette is returning.

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The infielder has decided to opt in to his $42 million player option for next season, The Post confirmed, after a disappointing first season in Queens.

The development was first reported by The Athletic.

Another season with the talented 28-year-old suggests there will be more stability within the Mets’ position-player group, after David Stearns acknowledged that the amount of upheaval previously may have contributed to the disastrous 2026 season.

With Bichette back in the fold, the Mets have a top (and middle) of a lineup that — barring what would be an unexpected, immediate implementation of a salary cap — almost certainly will feature himself, Juan Soto, Francisco Lindor, Carson Benge and A.J. Ewing.

Francisco Alvarez and Luis Torrens figure to return as the catching duo. If the Mets stick with the declining Marcus Semien, who is due $46 million over the next two years, and perhaps platoon him with Brett Baty at second base, the only positions not accounted for would be first base and designated hitter (either of which could belong to Jared Young).

For Bichette, the decision was expected but not a sure thing. In such a weak free agent market, in which the best second/third basemen are Jazz Chisholm Jr., Luis Arráez and Brandon Lowe, perhaps he could have topped the $84 million he would be opting out of, but certainly not approach his current average annual value.

For Bichette, the decision was expected but not a sure thing. In such a weak free agent market, in which the best second/third basemen are Jazz Chisholm Jr., Luis Arráez and Brandon Lowe, perhaps he could have topped the $84 million he would be opting out of, but certainly not approach his current average annual value. 

Last winter, after a strong platform season and excellence in the World Series with the Blue Jays, Bichette — the Mets’ backup plan after missing out on Kyle Tucker — signed a three-year, $126 million pact with player opt-outs after each season.

The expectation was the Mets would pay him plenty in what would be a short-term deal before he could opt out, test the market again and secure the length he sought, but no one was planning on how his 2026 campaign unfolded.

A proven and veteran hitter was among the game’s worst for the first two months, finishing May hitting .219 with a .583 OPS. He bounced back — the rest of the way just about all his numbers improved, including hitting .284 with a .772 OPS from June through September — but the Mets had dug a hole too great for his improved play to matter.

Bichette was not the face of the struggles of the brand-new Mets — that was Jorge Polanco, who barely played and really never played well — but a group that had attempted to replace a core of Pete Alonso, Brandon Nimmo, Edwin Díaz and Jeff McNeil never got going. 

“We and I made a number of decisions that created the potential for almost an uncapped downside scenario,” Stearns said at his end-of-season news conference, which arrived in September and not October. “We had a lot of change. I think change in New York is probably different than change in other markets.”

The Mets undoubtedly hope that the change will be minimized next season when they also will return with manager Andy Green.

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Their greatest needs, at least at the moment, are at the top of the rotation and in the bullpen rather than their everyday players. 

Perhaps Bichette — who spent his first seven seasons in Toronto, six of which finished with an OPS greater than .800 before slumping to a .702 mark in his initial year in Queens — will be more comfortable in Year 2.

“The first three months were some of the longest of my career, for sure, a combination of so many different things,” Bichette told The Post’s Mike Puma at the end of the season. “Simply put, my performance and the team’s performance in a new situation. I think I can look at the season and in some ways see it in a positive light and I think the team can as well.

“It was a weird year because I feel positive about this team going forward, and obviously have confidence in myself, so it’s a weird feeling to have that positivity about the team, about myself.”

The Mets claimed infielder Kyren Paris from the Angels and designated outfielder Cristian Pache for assignment.