Alonso’s free agent journey brought him back to Queens. He’s proving his worth all over again.
So, how do you like me now?
All-Star first baseman Pete Alonso had every reason to spend his winter bitter and frustrated, telling the New York Mets to stick it where the sun don’t shine.
Instead, he’s told everyone how elated he is to be back with the Mets and after showing the baseball world just what he’s capable of doing these first six weeks, hopes to not hear about his age again until he starts drawing social security checks.
“Honestly, why I would be angry?’’ Alonso told USA TODAY Sports. “For me, this organization has believed in me since I was a 21-year-old kid. They’re the team that drafted me. They’re the team that called me up. They didn’t trade me. So that means – I think – that they like me.”
It just took a private meeting before spring training in Tampa between Alonso, owner Steve Cohen and David Stearns, president of baseball operations, to express their true feelings about one another. Alonso didn’t get the long-term deal he wanted, but settled on a two-year, $54 million contract that he can walk away from after this season
“This is a great group, with a great culture and great people,” Alonso said. “I’ve made a lot of great relationships here, with the fans, the coaches, my teammates, the security guards, the clubhouse managers, everything. It’s very special. So that weighed in my decision a lot to come back.
“I get to play with a winning team that had such an amazing postseason last year. You could see all of the promise that we had. We had a lot of good momentum. I didn’t want to leave that. So, for me, the biggest priority is playing for a winning organization.
“And there’s no bigger stage than New York.”
While Alonso eventually signed that deal 24 hours after their private meeting, Alonso’s perspective on free agency was different with his hometown of Tampa hit by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, with Alonso and his wife forced to move out of their home with the flood damage.
“The free agency stuff became secondary,” he said, “because there were so many personal things in the offseason. I knew I didn’t have my best season, but I still knew I was going to be playing baseball somewhere. I just had to be patient.”