With the start of 2025, the urgency begins to grow for the four-time All-Star, Pete Alonso, to find a new home for the upcoming MLB season, in a situation that was unforeseen but confirms the volatility of the baseball market
Alonso was optimistic at the start of the offseason, when Dominican Juan Soto broke the market with a $765 million contract with the Mets. Alonso thought he could negotiate an attractive extension to keep a powerhouse in Queens
However, the situation has become dangerously heated between the Mets management and the player’s agent, Scott Boras, as they seek for Alonso to resign himself to staying with the team, but with a pay cut, due to the large amount of money they have already invested in Soto
The situation is getting complicated because Alonso is asking for a $200 million extension and has already rejected a first offer from the Mets for just $90 million. But that’s not all. Alonso wants a longer contract and, because of his age, the Mets don’t want to give it to him in the face of the imminent reality that he won’t be able to deliver big numbers forever
The unexpected factor for the Seattle Mariners
At this point, a third factor appeared in the negotiation that could break it, with an outcome that leaves everyone happy: the Seattle Mariners.
The Mariners have not been very active in the offseason. However, they are a team that has one of the best pitching rotations in 2024 and are looking to strengthen their offense in the short term, as they missed the playoffs with an 85-77 record, just one game short of a Wild Card spot and 3.5 games short of the American League West lead
Alonso would help the defense and be an important bat on offense. That’s why people like SNY’s Andy Martino said the Mariners would be a “great place” for Pete Alonso. While Jomboy Media’s Trevor Plouffe bet that Seattle could offer a three-year, $90 million contract, with the caveat that they are a team that “has needed offense for many years… (Alonso is) an instant offensive weapon”.
The question at this point is: how viable would it be for the player to leave the Big Apple with all its spotlights, to play in a small MLB market, such as the Mariners, with an identical offer to the one he rejected from the Mets?
Some analysts point out that the only way to convince Alonso would be with an offer of more than $100 million. Others, such as Jeff Passan, believe that a short-term deal with opt-out options would also be attractive, if the multi-year offer the player is hoping for does not come, with the caveat that there is little time to make a decision
At this point, the Scott Boras factor comes into play, as according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, he is negotiating a contract model similar to the nine-year, $214 million deal he got for Prince Fielder with the Detroit Tigers in 2012. Fielder was 28 years old, Alonso is 30. It’s two years, but it could be decisive
In fact, Fielder was unable to complete it because an injury forced him to retire early and left the Texas Rangers in a bind, when he still had three years left
From this point on, teams have been very careful to offer such contracts: “Teams are reluctant to overshadow Freddie Freeman’s six-year, $162 million contract and Matt Olson’s eight-year, $168 million contract,” Nightingale explained.
So far, eight teams have shown interest in Alonso, but they do not give in to what he aspires to, especially when his numbers dropped a little to 34 home runs and 88 RBIs, the lowest of his career, except for 2020, the year of the pandemic
While he remains a game-changing player, with 226 home runs, he is second only to Aaron Judge.
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