Brandon Brown
What could be Pete Alonso’s final season with the New York Mets hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing. The team has been up and down – 0-5 early followed by a 12-3 spell, and now 5-10 since then – and Alonso’s performance is well below his typical performance. His current 1-for-30 skid has dragged his season batting line to .205/.293/.417. He hit eight home runs.
The season is still young, of course, and history says Alonso will finish the year with 40 home runs, as he did in four of his five 162-game seasons (he hit 37 homers the other year). This is an important year because it is Alonso’s free agent year. You only need to look at Aaron Judge across town to see how rewarding a year of walking full of energy can be.
Alonso and the Mets have reportedly had contract extension negotiations over the years, though obviously nothing has come of it, and a few weeks ago new POBO David Stearns admitted that Alonso reaching free agency is “the most likely outcome.” When speaking with The Athletic recentlyAlonso reiterated that he loves the Mets and New York, although free agency is not on his mind.
“I’m not particularly thinking about that right now.”
“I love the city I play in. I consider myself a New Yorker. I have a great relationship with the guys on the team, obviously. And I think I have a great relationship with the people in the front office and with Steve as well. We’ll see what happens in this winter. It’s a big question mark for me right now, I’m just focusing on doing what I can to help us win every day.
A pretty standard answer for a future free agent, of course. They all love the team and the city. To be fair, it feels genuine with Alonso, who has fully embraced the organization and the fans. At least from the outside, it appears to be more than a favor to Alonso, the team’s most popular player. The sport’s richest owner letting the team’s most beloved player leave would be a tough sell.
Love for the organization only goes so far when it comes to contract negotiation. There are reasons for the Mets to extend Alonso and also reasons for the Mets to avoid extending Alonsowho turns 30 in the offseason and belongs to a demographic — right-handed hitting and throwing first basemen with limited defensive value — that a) typically doesn’t age well and b) isn’t paid very well.
Further complicating matters is Scott Boras, Alonso’s agent, and a free agent market that is currently slated to be packed with high-quality talent. Juan Soto, a superior hitter to Alonso and also four years younger, will be a free agent and is, objectively, a better use of the money. Soto, Alex Bregman and Corbin Burnes will all be free agents and clients of Scott Boras.
I don’t envy the Mets. Alonso is beloved, and it’s clear they want to see him become the franchise’s all-time home run king — Alonso is 52 behind Darryl Strawberry — and eventually have his 20th-place finisher retired. At the same time, there are already some signs of decline, particularly against speed. Steve Cohen can afford to keep a potentially bad contract. Why should fans care?
All signs point to Alonso becoming a free agent after the season and testing the waters, and I’m sure the Mets will remain involved in the bidding. How serious? That remains to be seen. Alonso’s performance (and the team’s performance) between now and then will certainly play a big part in all of this.
