What could a new contract for Pete Alonso look like?
Plus, the Mets open a six-game homestand starting tonight against the Nationals
What’s up with the Mets? ⚾
The Mets were off on Monday - they open a three-game series with the Nationals on Tuesday at Citi Field
Pete Alonso was named the National League’s Player of the Week for June 2 - June 8. It was his fifth career POTW award after previously winning on June 24, 2019; September 26, 2022; July 30, 2023; and April 15th of last season
Griffin Canning is another example of the Mets confidence in their ability to reinvent pitchers (NY Post)
The evolution of Alonso - a complete hitter (Newsday)
Who’s Hot? 🔥
Over his last 15 games, Pete Alonso is hitting .344/.412/.803 with four doubles, eight home runs and 23 RBI with 21 hits and 12 runs scored
Over his last ten games, Juan Soto is hitting .364/.553/.697 with two doubles, three home runs and six RBI with 12 hits and 12 runs scored
Over his last 44 games, Francisco Lindor is hitting .298/.374/.539 with seven doubles, 12 home runs and 30 RBI with 53 hits and 31 runs scored
Over his last 12 games, Jeff McNeil is hitting .302/.354/.674 with four doubles, four home runs and seven RBI with 13 hits and six runs scored
Season Paces 🐎
Pete Alonso: 162 games, 49 doubles, 41 HR, 149 RBI
Francisco Lindor: 157 games, 27 doubles, 34 home runs, 93 RBI
Juan Soto: 159 games, 29 doubles, 27 home runs, 76 RBI
Brandon Nimmo: 152 games, 29 doubles, 24 home runs, 83 RBI
Down on the Farm 🌾
All Mets minor league affiliates were off on Monday.
Today’s Game 🗓️
Match-up: Mets (42-24) vs. Nationals (30-35)
Where: Citi Field - Flushing, NY
Starters: RHP Griffin Canning (6-2, 2.90 ERA) vs. LHP MacKenzie Gore (3-5, 2.87 ERA)
When: 7:10 PM EDT
Where to Watch: SNY
Dear Mets - sign the man! ✍️
It wasn’t too long ago that fans and some members (not all) of the media were calling for the Mets to move on from Pete Alonso.
He was a lingering free agent who perhaps overplayed his hand and value in the free agent market, who didn’t officially sign back with the Mets until February 12 when he literally had no other choices to turn to after exhausting whatever options he might have had with some teams and seeing the doors close on him with others.
Recall, it was Steve Cohen himself who paid a visit to Alonso at his home in the Tampa area right before he signed to talk to him and get the engine running on this new deal he signed, which will pay him $30 million this season with a $24 million player option in 2025. His $30 million salary is the highest ever given to a first baseman.
And does that seem like a steal or what?
Fast forward not even four months from his signing date, and Alonso has essentially shut everyone up who said his best days were behind him. Not only is he on pace for the best season of his career, he is a legit MVP candidate right now.
His 2.6 fWAR is seventh-best, his .990 OPS is third-best, he is fifth in the league in hitting with a .301 batting average, his .594 SLG is second-best, his .396 OBP is fourth-best, his 177 wRC+ is second-best.
As of this date, he’s primarily contending with Shohei Ohtani and Pete Crow-Armstrong in the race. And yes, there is a lot of season left. So it’s too early to see how this is truly going to take shape.
But no matter what, there’s nobody more important to the Mets right now than Alonso and what he has done to both shape and pace the offense. As was the case with Lindor last year, the Mets are unquestionably in a different place even with an average season from their star first baseman.
It’s nice to be having this conversation, isn’t it? Especially after such an uncertain and tumultuous winter for him.
The question going forward, aside from whether or not he can maintain this MVP pace, is what’s going to happen after this season?
Alonso can and probably will opt out after this season - the $24 million player option seems like a joke right now, and he will unquestionably be able to command a longer-term deal for a similar salary to what he is getting in 2025, which again, is the highest single-season salary ever given to a first baseman.
But these are the Mets, the team he has said repeatedly he wants to remain with for the rest of his career. He is about to break through Darryl Strawberry’s franchise mark for home runs at 252, and if he stays, will make history in other categories as well.
And at this pace, he is indisputably on a Hall of Fame trajectory. This season is only helping to push that resume forward.
We all know who Alonso’s agent is. We all know this past winter may have left a sour taste in everyone’s mouth. But we all know - as does Alonso, Scott Boras, David Stearns, and Steve Cohen - that business is business and the landscape with Alonso has probably changed for his next contract thanks to what has been an absolutely magnificent year to date.
And, we all know that both sides understand there’s no other path for either to take but the one that makes Alonso a Met for life. There’s just no way I can see either moving forward without one another. He’s a homegrown star, nobody in the National League has hit more home runs than Alonso since 2019, he fits here, he understands how to play here, he now understands how to win here, and he has shown an ability to adjust mid-career in an effort to stay productive and relevant for his club.
Having said all of that, will Cohen and Stearns try and prevent Alonso from opting out at the end of the season? It makes sense to me for them to at least try.
On the business and less emotional side of the situation, the free agent class for first basemen isn’t that inspiring. There’s Luis Arraez, Josh Bell, Wilmer Flores, Paul Goldschmidt, Carlos Santana, and Justin Turner among the better options.
Yes, the Mets do have a prospect waiting in the wings at first base in Ryan Clifford, and if someone can tell me Clifford will be what Alonso has been to this club over the next five years with proof, fine, let Alonso go.
It wouldn’t be unprecedented for Boras to work an extension before Alonso reaches free agency. Some players he negotiates extensions for include Carlos González, Elvis Andrus, Stephen Strasburg, José Altuve, and Xander Bogaerts. So, it can happen, and for a player who wants to be with the Mets long-term, it seems possible if the Mets would be willing to engage Boras on the matter this summer.
I am sure the Mets will be concerned again about the projections for Alonso. He will be entering his age-31 season in 2026, and while he has defied those projections over the first 66 games of this season, age isn’t kind to anyone in this world, especially professional athletes. Still, last winter should prove to be a blessing in disguise for Alonso despite the frustration it brought.
And maybe if the Mets floated a five-year deal in the area of $150-175 million into his locker, that could be an agreeable baseline to work from to get a long-term deal done.
Around the League 🚩
Brandon Marsh’s walk-off single got the Phillies back on the winning track as they edged the Cubs 4-3
Roman Anthony - MLB’s top prospect - went 0-for-4 in his debut with the Red Sox as they fell 10-8 to the Rays
Chris Sale struck out 11 over seven innings as the Braves ended their losing streak with a 7-1 win over the Brewers
The Reds got back over the .500 mark with a 7-4 win over the Guardians
Pete and the Mets need to conclude that as Frank sang, It's love and marriage, they go together like a horse and carriage, this I tell you brother, you can't have one without the other!
Didn't know that Boras had that many clients who signed extensions. Hope it happens. To digress: it's worth noting that despite the lamentations, guess who leads the Mets in runs scored? Soto. Who's fifth in rbi's? Baty.