The New York Mets landed the prize of the offseason by signing outfielder Juan Soto to a record-breaking $765 million contract. President of baseball operations David Stearns still needs to sort out the Mets' first base situation, though. Is a reunion with homegrown All-Star slugger Pete Alonso on the horizon?
MLB's hot stove has been cooking in recent days with several free-agent deals and trades being made ahead of the holidays. One area of the market seeing a lot of movement is first base.
Here's a list of some notable moves that have been made:
- Christian Walker signed a three-year, $60 million deal with the Houston Astros.
- The Arizona Diamondbacks traded for Josh Naylor.
- The Cleveland Guardians signed Carlos Santana to a one-year, $12 million deal.
- Paul Goldschmidt signed a one-year, $12.5 million deal with the New York Yankees.
- Nathaniel Lowe was traded to the Washington Nationals.
That doesn't leave a ton of options for Alonso. While the Seattle Mariners could make sense for the Polar Bear, the Mets have an obvious need that can be filled by a player who has starred for them since 2019.
"With Nathaniel Lowe heading to DC, Pete Alonso's market further shrinks," MLB.com's Mets beat writer Anthony DiComo posted on X (formerly Twitter). "The Nationals, Yankees, Astros, Diamondbacks and Guardians have all acquired non-Alonso first basemen in recent days. The Mets remain the cleanest and most obvious fit for him. We'll see how it goes."
No clear market forming will make it tough for agent Scott Boras to land the $200 million contract he's seeking for Alonso. This also plays into the Mets' hands after they reportedly had a seven-year, $158 million extension offer rejected by Alonso's camp in June 2023.
Spotrac projected a six-year, $174 million deal for the right-handed slugger at the start of the offseason. The New York Post's Jon Heyman predicted he'd land a $152 million guarantee, but recent events might mean Alonso settles for less than any of these predictions.
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