The Mets and Pete Alonso it seemed like they had been staring for a long time and it wasn’t clear who would blink first. Reports from last week indicated that Alonso’s camp had entered into a temporary contract with the Mets but Alonso has yet to sign it. Reports from both Andy Martino of SNY and Joel Sherman of the New York Post suggest a pivot point where the Mets could move on to plans that exclude Alonso from having a spot on the team through 2025.
It has long seemed like Alonso’s free agency could go this way. Last winter, the “Boras Four” participated in free agency until the new year and ended up getting less than expected contracts. Cody Bellinger, Matt Chapman, Blake Snell again Jordan Montgomery all the signed contracts are guaranteed for only two or three years, although each player has the option to leave after each season. There were reasons to expect Alonso to follow them down this road.
Alonso reportedly turned down a seven-year, $158MM extension through the summer of 2023. He still had one arbitration season to go at that point, ultimately making $20.5MM in 2024, so he effectively turned down $137.5MM for six free agents. years. There were reports that Alonso was looking at contracts for Freddie Freeman again Matt Olson on target. Freeman signed $162MM over six years, though deferred. Olson signed an eight-year, $168MM extension with two years left in free agency.
But Alonso is not a complete player like those two. While his power is elite, his plate discipline and defense are both inferior to Freeman and Olson. He came back and forth in a few related years. He had a career batting line of .261/.349/.535 and a 137 wRC+ in the 2022 season but then hit .229/.324/.480 with a 122 wRC+ in the last two campaigns. That’s still solid production but it will affect a club thinking about long-term investment.
Alonso is still unsigned and the pitchers and relievers will report to spring training in less than a month. There is a clear willingness to scramble for an interim agreement but a deal has yet to come together. There’s still plenty of time, as Bellinger’s deal came together in late February of last year, Chapman’s in early March. However, today’s two reports indicate that the Mets are beginning to consider other options.
The Mets have had a front office shake-up since giving that extension to Alonso. Billy Eppler was the general manager at the time but David Stearns now runs the club’s baseball department. Stearns hasn’t devoted many resources to first base, as shown in MLBTR’s Contract Tracker. Three-year, $16MM contract Eric Thames it was his biggest investment in the Brewers position. Milwaukee is not bought Chris Carter after he hit 41 home runs in 2016, rather than paying him an estimated $8.1MM salary.
Stearns has been working with more resources since he was with the Mets but has continued to be measured by how he uses those resources, except for Juan Soto deal. Instead of signing top free agent starting pitchers, he took bounceback flyers on guys Frankie Montas again Griffin Canning. He also signed Clay Holmeshoping to get the pitcher’s starting price for relief prices.
The Mets have internal options for the corner infield job. Mark Vientos had a good season in 2024, playing third base, but his defense did not receive strong marks. It has been suggested that he may be transferred to the first place, where there is a hot and open competition between boys Brett Baty, Luisangel Acuña again Ronny Mauricio. There is uncertainty going down that road and it would make some sense to add Alonso to the mix, but it seems the Mets and Alonso’s camp can’t agree on a fair price.
Teams will naturally be attracted to a short-term deal as it reduces the chances of them being tied down for a player’s down years, but usually a player looks to get a higher average annual value as a deal. Bellinger’s deal guaranteed him $80MM but in full-frontal fashion, allowing him to opt out after a year with $30MM in his pocket or after two years with $60MM in the bank. Alonso probably wants the same thing, which the Mets probably don’t.
The Mets are slated to be the third most competitive balance sheet taxpayer and RosterResource projects their CBT number at $276MM next year. Signing Alonso for something in the $25-30MM per year range would bring that closer to the fourth and final tax bracket, which is $301MM this year. The Mets will pay a 95% tax on spending from third through fourth, and a 110% tax on spending above the top line. So, even hiring Alonso for one year and then out would cost them something like $60MM. If he has a disappointing season and doesn’t pan out, like Bellinger did, they’ll be stuck on this deal for another year or two.
The Mets also stand to receive compensation for a draft pick if Alonso signs elsewhere. As a taxpayer, their bonus pick would not be after the fourth round. That’s not very important in baseball terms but it’s nothing and it will go away if they re-sign Alonso.
It’s a tricky statistic for the Mets to do with a franchise favorite, but it seems like they’re willing to play hard ball and move on to other options soon. Martino says the Mets have reached out to the Blue Jays about it Vladimir Guerrero Jr. but it also downplays the discussion significantly, describing eligibility as “fantasy baseball.” That goes along with public comments from Toronto general manager Ross Atkins, who often downplays the chances of the Jays trading Guerrero or. Bo Bichette.
Martino talks about getting together again Jesse Winker or signing Anthony Santander as other possible pivots, although he adds that the latter is unlikely to materialize. For Alonso, if he does not intend to return to Queens, he will have to make his own pivot. MLBTR recently took a look at other clubs that might sign him to a short-term deal, with the Giants, Blue Jays, Red Sox, Angels, Athletics and Tigers among the options.
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