NEW YORK, NEW YORK – APRIL 09: Pete Alonso #20 of the New York Mets looks on against the Minnesota Twins at Citi Field on April 09, 2019 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. The Twins defeated the Mets 14-8. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
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The New York Mets were able to reunite with one of the most productive players in the franchise’s history last winter and that proved to be one of their best moves of the offseason. Now, fans are hoping they can do it again.
After six seasons with the Mets, the team that drafted him, first base slugger Pete Alonso reached free agency and had difficulty finding a long-term deal. Instead, he took a two-year, $54 million contract with an opt out to return to the Mets.
Alonso proceeded to slug 38 home runs in his fourth consecutive All-Star season that saw him become the franchise’s all-time leader in long balls. Now he has opted out and hit free agency again and the Mets will have to decide if they want to bring him back.
“Alonso lingered to spring training 2025 before agreeing to what amounted to a one-year, $30 million contract to stay a Met,” Joel Sherman noted for the New York Post. “He then had a strong season — second in the majors in RBIs, fifth in extra-base hits, eighth in homers. That, combined with the absence of a qualifying offer this time, should make him more appealing, though his profile remains widely unloved within the industry.”
It seems unlikely that Alonso would be willing to take another short-term deal this winter and he’s a year older, so the Mets’ decision on him might be even more difficult than it was last year.
On Tuesday, from the Major League Baseball General Managers meetings in Las Vegas, Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns sent a message on the team’s interest in Alonso after he opted out of his contract.
“We certainly have interest in bringing Pete back,” Stearns said during an appearance on MLB Network. “He’s been a really good Met, he’s been a great representative of the organization, he’s someone who cares a lot about the Mets and New York and we care a lot about him. So, we’re certainly interested in bringing him back. We’ve got to see where the offseason goes and what Pete’s preferences are. We were able to bring him back last year and certainly our hope is we can do the same this year.”
Stearns refused to specify whether the team has been negotiating with Alonso up to this point but he confirmed that discussions would either begin or continue to take place.
“I’m certain we’re going to be talking over the course of the offseason,” Stearns added on MLB Network.
Based on this latest soundbite from the Mets’ front office, the team is at least signaling interest in forging a reunion with Alonso. But after his decision to leave the second year of his contract with the team on the table, a return is far from guaranteed.