Late Wednesday night coming across the screen or as they were scrolling social media the news every Mets fan wanted to hear came to fruition. Pete Alonso and the New York Mets agreed to a contract.
The Polar Bear is right where he belongs and will be manning first base for the Amazin's this season. Alonso agreed to a 2-year $54 million contract with the Mets. He will make $30 million this season and has an opt-out after this season.
A fan favorite Alonso has been the face of the franchise for some time now. Despite the Mets' attempts to push Francisco Lindor, there is something about Pete and the Mets fans that is hard to put a value on. Alonso and his agent tried to leverage that into a massive payday, but Cohen and the Mets balked at the idea all winter long.
Alonso was offered a seven-year, $158 million contract in 2023 and that was based on the belief that he could earn even more than that when he became a free agent this off-season. The strategy used by his agent Scott Boras was not one that Mets owner Steve Cohen appreciated. Boras has been known to rub owners the wrong way and has been on the wrong side of many deals recently.
Early winter talks were that Cohen didn't want Pete back and had his mind set on getting Vlad Guerrero from the Jays, but that never came to pass. Then with rumors circling that the Blue Jays and Mariners would meet Alonso's asking price, reports came out that Alonso told Boras to stop playing games and that he wanted to be a New York Met. That meant taking a smaller deal, but Alonso is back where he wanted to be and the fans are excited to have their favorite back in the lineup.
That lineup now looks deadly with Alonso, Lindor and of course newly signed Juan Soto. Social media exploded at the news of Alonso's signing with Mets fans being ecstatic at the move. Alonso has played six years for the Mets and put up 226 home runs, 586 RBIs and 493 runs scored.