The New York Mets want Pete Alonso back despite not caving into his camp’s specific demands. The slugger also wants to return to Queens despite talking to other teams in search of a better deal for himself.
In the middle of it all, you can find Mets fans who are eager to count on their most important power threat for 2025 and beyond. They are the ones really suffering from this, particularly back and forth.
Mets insider Andy Martino talked about the current state of negotiations. He says that the last offer that the first baseman turned down will be hard to beat by Alonso’s other real suitor, the Toronto Blue Jays.
“The final Mets offer that Alonso turned down — that’s gonna be tough for him to beat with the Blue Jays,” Martino said. “That was the $70 million that we talked about for three years, additional deferred money. That could’ve been a real win probably in what the ultimate dollar figure would’ve looked like for Alonso. Given what the Blue Jays gave [Anthony] Santander — it was in the 60s after the deferred money — they’re probably not gonna get as good an offer from Toronto as they’ve already gotten from the Mets, and turned down from the Mets.”
The Mets have a chance to retain their man if they play their cards right
Martino seems to believe that talks will eventually circle back to the Mets, who appear to be playing the long game in negotiations. It will take time, though.
“I’m still getting an expectation that if he comes back it’s gonna take a while,” Martino explained. “It seems like we could easily get to spring training where this is still a topic. And if Pete re-signs, it could be when the Mets are already in camp. There’s no reason for the Mets to rush.”
A few days ago, it was reported that the Mets were expecting Alonso, who has hit 226 home runs with the team in six years, to sign elsewhere. With Toronto being the only real threat to get him besides New York, there is a real chance he eventually returns to the place in which he was so happy and successful.