Kepner: The Mets must to do right by Pete Alonso, their new home run king, and keep him in Queens for good

New York Times

2 days ago

The first manager of the New York Mets once lost a job because his bosses thought he was too old.
'I'll never make the mistake of being 70 again,' Casey Stengel said.
Somewhere, deep down, Pete Alonso can relate to the 'Old Perfessor' and his long-ago departure from the Yankees. Alonso made the mistake of turning 30 last December, the same week the Mets signed the 26-year-old Juan Soto for 15 years and $765 million.
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Alonso remained unsigned for months.
Soto is young and draws lots of walks, and the market for those traits pushed the Mets to his record deal. With slugging first basemen apparently in low demand, Alonso stirred less interest, returning in February for $30 million — and the chance to shop his services again this winter, provided he declines his $24 million player option.
'I think he's going to have an amazing resume heading into it,' Brandon Nimmo said. 'And he's going to get what he deserves.'
Nimmo and the Mets were buoyant on Tuesday night, because Alonso broke Darryl Strawberry's franchise record for homers in a 13-5 victory over the Atlanta Braves. It wasn't a laugher all the way; after Alonso smashed No. 252 off Spencer Strider in the third inning, Clay Holmes gave a four-run lead right back.
It took four more homers — including Alonso's 253rd — to run away with the win, just the second for the Mets in their last 13 games. That's what the team needed most. With Alonso's power, the record was inevitable.
'I can't think about it, because if you force it, then it's not going to happen,' Alonso said. 'If you just try and win the game, capitalize on pitches, take what the game gives you and you try and win, then the game rewards you.'
The game has given plenty to Alonso, but he's had to earn all of it; twice he won the home run derby to earn MLB's $1 million prize, which was more than his salary both seasons. He was the Mets' second-round pick in 2016, after they'd selected two long-gone pitchers, Justin Dunn and Anthony Kay.
The Mets missed on Alonso then — to be fair, so did everyone else — and until they sign him long-term, they're missing on him now, too. Steve Cohen is the richest owner in the major leagues, the most powerful superfan of the orange and blue. No matter the metrics, no matter the market, Alonso is different. That should be obvious by now.
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With hope flickering last October, it was Alonso who saved the Mets with that laser over the right field fence in Milwaukee. His .999 postseason OPS helped carry the Mets within two victories of the World Series, and he's gone full Polar Bear since: an .880 OPS this season, with 28 homers, 96 RBI — and no days off since June 2023.
'Since day one, what I've seen from him is a guy that cares so much about winning, cares so much about his teammates and the organization,' said manager Carlos Mendoza, who said the night moved him to tears.
'You appreciate (that) he posts. That's something, as a manager, you don't have to worry about who's playing first base and who's hitting the middle of your lineup. I think it goes back to understanding what it takes to play here.'
That's an important intangible, connective tissue between a player and the fans who have watched him grow up in their colors. Through all of the brinkmanship last winter, the Mets and Alonso at least had the sense to not sever that bond.
Alonso is the Mets' version of Aaron Judge, who turned down a long-term contract offer from the Yankees on opening day in 2022, then set the American League single-season home run record. The Yankees rewarded Judge with a forever contract, and now it's on Cohen and his baseball operations president, David Stearns, to do right by Alonso.
'I have a goal to play baseball until I'm through my age 40 season,' Alonso said, meaning through 2035. 'And for me, I'm gonna work hard and do that. And you know what? Business side, Steve and David, they've got to come through.'
With their cautious commitment last winter (technically two years and $54 million, though the opt-out after one year is a formality), the Mets essentially challenged Alonso to show them more. Has he shown something in these last four and a half months?
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'Yeah, for sure,' Alonso said. 'For me, I love the city of New York, I love this fan base, it's been great. But, again, the business is the business side if they choose to go in another direction. But for me, it's been an absolute treat and pleasure here. This group is really special. This group was one of the biggest reasons why I came back.
'Not only was it the talent, but the people here. Not just on the team, the coaching staff, all the people here that work in the clubhouse, the front office, and obviously the training room. I mean, we've just got an incredible group here that has a great purpose. It's been great playing here — but, yeah, I hope it doesn't end.'
It shouldn't.
Alonso can't make himself any younger, but the special ones sometimes age better than you'd think. And even if Alonso has only, say, five more years as an elite run producer, the Mets must ensure that they come in Flushing.
Cohen can afford it — everyone knows that — and besides, at this point, would you ever want to doubt Pete Alonso? And would you ever want to let your fans lose him?
'To be able to do that in front of this crowd, I mean, it's just really special,' Alonso said. 'I could just feel the support, you could hear it. I mean, it's electric. It was a dream. It was a wild dream.'
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