We don't have time, make a decision quickly! Soto was so kind, and the Mets, who have been the top RBI player for six years, only looked at the points of judgment
Jan 16, 2025
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FA big guns first baseman Pete Alonso is rarely getting the contract he wants. Negotiations with the New York Mets, an original team, are also difficult. Alonso offered the Mets a three-year contract and an opt-out condition after one to two years last week, but they are reportedly disagreeing on the amount.
In this regard, the New York Post reported on the 16th (Korea time) that the Mets and Alonso are negotiating over a short-term contract, but there seems to be not enough time to reach an agreement due to differences in each other's terms and conditions. "Time is important because the Mets want a solution to recruit other players before spring training with less than a month left."
In other words, we need to finalize whether to renew the contract with Alonso and find another player who will fill the position that needs reinforcement, but we don't have much time. If negotiations with Alonso break down, the Mets are likely to contact another FA slugger Anthony Santander, and it seems that they plan to look into the reliever market to strengthen the bullpen.
Alonso has virtually no team to accept the conditions he wants unless it's the Mets. Most of the teams that need first baseman have been resolved through trade with FA, so the demand base has decreased significantly.
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Last month, the Mets brought Juan Soto, the FA's biggest fish, to a 15-year, $765 million contract in sports history. Under the leadership of owner Steve Cohen, he gave all kinds of sincerity and kindness and met all the conditions he wanted. You can spend as much money as you want if you have the will to Alonso. However, he is passive. Why is that. Let's think of the situation two years ago.
In June 2023, the Mets offered Alonso a seven-year, $158 million (about 230 billion won) extension contract. It was a long-term contract offer covering the FA season from 2024 to 2030. At the time, the Mets offered Alonso such an offer by referring to Atlanta Braves first baseman Matt Olson's eight-year, $168 million deal ahead of the 2022 season.
But Alonso flatly refused. And the Mets discussed an Alonso trade with the Chicago Cubs that summer. Of course, it didn't happen. At the time, Alonso determined that the proposal was below his value. At that time, the OPS remained around 0.860, with a batting average of 230,000, but he believed that he could receive more than $200 million if he went to the FA market after the 2024 season.
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What stood out was the decrease in slugging power. He hit the most home runs at 695 at-bats in his career, but had the fewest homers at 34. The home run-to-bat ratio was 4.9%, barely more than half of 7.0% of the previous season and 7.6% of the debut season in 2019.
The Mets may have made their own judgment that Alonso was aging. Since his debut in 2019, he has played more than 600 at-bats every year except for the shortened season. In other words, he has never been seriously injured. You get a good evaluation in terms of self-management. But 'Aging Curve' is a different story. In fact, the slugging rate has been on the decline for four consecutive years since 2021.
In an article highlighting Alonso's FA situation, ESPN listed teams in the order of the Mets, Los Angeles Angels, Seattle Mariners, Detroit Tigers, San Francisco Giants, Cincinnati Reds, Toronto Blue Jays, and Oakland Athletics based on their desperation. The only real buyers are the Mets.
Alonso ranks first in RBIs (586) for six years from 2019 to last year. It boasts a four-time All-Star and two-time All-Star home run derby winning career. ESPN said 'Now it's a new world of baseball. Alonso's FA negotiations have been slow with each club focusing on his age and relatively weak on-base percentage, last year's worst slugging percentage, and lack of defense and baserunning.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
