The Mets’ retool was one of the defining stories of the trade deadline. While it became clear in the weeks approaching August 1 that rentals like Tommy Pham and David Robertson would be on the move, New York’s course of action with Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander remained a mystery until the weekend before the deadline.
In the wake of trading the future Hall of Famers to AL West rivals, Mets’ brass indicated they were prepared to take a step back in 2024 while focusing on the longer-term future. Owner Steve Cohen has expressed his hope the club will be competitive next year but forecast a quieter offseason than the franchise has had in the past two winters.
The club’s less certain intentions for ’24 have raised some questions about Pete Alonso’s future. The three-time All-Star has one more season of arbitration eligibility. Even if the Mets aren’t rebuilding, there’s an argument for them to pick a clear direction regarding Alonso — either by trading him to a clearer contender or working to get an extension wrapped up.
[Related: What Path Should The Mets Pick With Pete Alonso?]
Last week, the New York Post’s Mike Puma wrote the Mets had floated Alonso’s name in trade talks prior to the deadline. Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic shines some light on those discussions, reporting that the Brewers and Cubs were among the teams in contact with New York brass. Rosenthal suggests talks between the Mets and Milwaukee had more traction than conversations with the Cubs, though it isn’t clear how close New York got to a deal with any team.
Asked about Rosenthal’s report following the Mets’ loss in Atlanta tonight, Alonso reiterated to reporters that he “(loves) being a Met (and) representing the city of New York” (via Tim Healey of Newsday). The star slugger unsurprisingly didn’t provide specifics about the chances of an extension, noting he “(doesn’t) know what the future holds.”
If the Mets were to seriously consider moving him next offseason, Alonso would quite likely be the best hitter on the trade market. He’s one homer away from reaching 40 for the third time in his four 162-game seasons (and was on a similar pace during the shortened schedule). Alonso’s .224 average and .325 on-base percentage are narrowly career-low marks, though it’s possible his rate production was deflated by injury.
He sprained his left wrist on a hit-by-pitch in June, an injury that was initially expected to cost him three or four weeks. Instead, Alonso returned within 10 days. He hit just .155/.277/.366 between his return and the All-Star Break. Since the Midsummer Classic, he has a characteristically excellent .262/.359/.623 batting line.
Alonso is playing this season on a $14.5MM salary. That figure could push north of $20MM for his final arbitration season. That’s a notable sum but still below market value for an impact bat of Alonso’s ilk. The one year of remaining control would likely prevent the Mets from recouping a Top 50-caliber prospect in a trade, but there’d still be plenty of interest around the league.
Last winter, the Blue Jays shipped Teoscar Hernández to the Mariners before his final arbitration season. Hernández was a bit cheaper than Alonso will be — he eventually lost his hearing and is making $14MM — but wasn’t quite as good a hitter. Over the three seasons preceding the trade, Hernández hit .283/.333/.519. Alonso owns a .256/.341/.523 line going back to 2021 while playing his home games at a more pitcher-friendly environment.
It stands to reason the Mets would look to top the Jays’ return for Hernández. Seattle sent three seasons of club control over an above-average reliever (Erik Swanson) and a minor league pitcher (Adam Macko) whom Baseball America ranked the #10 prospect in the Toronto system after the trade. If another team acquires Alonso over the offseason, they’d be able to make a qualifying offer the following winter to partially backfill some of the prospect value they surrendered.
Each of Milwaukee and Chicago could check back in with the Mets about Alonso’s availability, though they certainly wouldn’t be the only teams with interest. Milwaukee acquired Carlos Santana to man first base down the stretch. He’s an impending free agent, while Rowdy Tellez seems likely to be non-tendered.
The Cubs have used Cody Bellinger and Jeimer Candelario — both of whom are impending free agents — at first base since the deadline. They already parted ways with Eric Hosmer and Trey Mancini earlier in the year. Prospect Matt Mervis is having an excellent season in Triple-A but scuffled in a 25-game MLB debut this summer. Even if the Cubs consider Mervis a likely everyday player going into ’24, they could certainly kick him over to designated hitter to accommodate a player of Alonso’s caliber.
Sorry Mets – the Brewers were never going to move Chourio.
No but they probably would have moved Taylor, Weimer or maybe Frelick and either another minor leaguer or Tellez to finish out the season. Getting rid of the aging veterans i understand but trading a guy who could pass Darryl Strawberry as the franchises all time Home Run leader by next season doesn’t make sense if all they were going to settle for is a single prospect.
I’d eat that Churro up.
You in San Antonio?
Sounds creepy
@BucksPackersBrewersWow!- and you know this how? Just curious, you were involved in the discussions?
You don’t need to be involved with trade discussions to know that a top 10 prospect wasn’t going to be traded for an expensive 1b with one year of control.
“an expensive 1b with one year of control.”
This seems like an understatement of Alonso’s value.
It’s relative to the Brewers spending habits, particularly for 1B.
Name all their starting 1B since Prince Fielder, who spent more than a handful of games there, then check their salaries.
Also remember that Carter hit 40 HR that 1 year, and they let him walk. They really don’t seem to value that position a whole lot. That’s why he’s expensive (along with the general cheapness of the organization).
Thats actually a very accurate statement.
Since Cecil Cooper retired after the 1987 season after an 11 year run, between 1988 and Prince Fielder’s emergence in 2006 the Brewers trotted out the likes of:
Greg Brock
Franklin Stubbs
John Jaha
Bob Hamelin
Brian Banks
Sean Berry
Mark Loretta
Richie Sexson
Lyle Overbay
When Jaha was eligible for free agency they let him walk and traded Sexson a year away from free agency. After the Fielder era ended the revolving door re-opened to the likes of:
Corey Hart
Travis Ishikawa
Juan Francisco
Sean Halton
Mark Reynolds
Adam Lind
Chris Carter
Eric Thames
Jesus Aguilar
Justin Smoak
Dan Vogelbach
Rowdy Tellez
Carlos Santana
This team has never spent big money on a First Baseman and aren’t likely to start now
@rsox
Here’s a guy who studied his response. Respect the detail
It’s not underestimating his value. He’s going to make 20 million therefore he’s expensive, and he doesn’t play good d whatsoever.
Try looking at baseball value sites and see what his value is. You fans just look at guys numbers and think it’s valuable when you miss a key component to 24/30 teams in the league which is how much money the player makes. If a team spends 100 million and a player makes 20 million they probably aren’t going to be interested in the player even if he hits 60 hrs.
Chourio for example is worth 6 times as much as one year of Alonso.
Chourio has less extra base hits in AA then Alonso has home runs in the Majors. Chourio has a low walk rate. Alonso would have the Major League record for home runs in his first five MLB seasons if not for the pandemic. Meanwhile he is still close. Your continuous hatred for the Mets is concerning. They are just a baseball team and no one should hate a sports team as much as you do.
While it can’t be an absolute guarantee MKE wouldn’t move him, it is highly, HIGHLY unlikely. You have to consider the Brewers track record, both in trades and spending.
They rarely pay big money for anyone if they can help it (if you’re fooled by the Yelich deal, remember why they’ve traded Hader or Renfroe, or let any number of catchers walk over the past several years in free agency). They routinely target players in trades, free agency, and the waiver wire who are cheap AND controllable, and as a bonus have minor league options, for more than 1 year. With Alonso looking at an arb figure north of $20 million, it doesn’t fit their approach at all. If you need further proof of that, rehash their handling of the Corbin Burnes arb situation.
I rather doubt MKE would have considered Weimer, Frelick, or any of their better prospects, unless the Mets made it financially impossible to refuse (and I don’t know if it’s legal to pay any part of a yet-to-be-determined arbitration figure) it’s probably 99.9% that they would not move Chourio.
As for the stat comparison, the kid is what? Still 19 I believe. There’s a chance he actually gets better. And with all the years of control, it’s still pretty much a no brainer he wasn’t going anywhere.
And the personal beef with BPBW, or his with the Mets..that’s between you and him.
Not saying Chourois won’t be a star. He might be. I’m saying Alonso is a star without question. He is the most prolific home-run hitter in mlb history at this point in his career. Stars aren’t cheap. I would be devastated to see Alonso leave and think it’s absurd to even entertain the thought of him leaving but realistically the Mets aren’t trading him without at least a top ten prospect to start the talks. Besides Ohtani who else on the market is getting penciled in for forty to fifty home runs next season?
I can’t think of anyone. And none of it really matters as it pertains to MKE, because of everything I stated above. It’s just not how they operate.
Another side note: the article mentions Tellez being a non-tender candidate. He absolutely should be, but he’s another one of those guys management seems to love and give too many chances to. I think the main reason they went after anyone to play 1B, is because he was injured and they weren’t sure when he’d be back. They found a bargain in Santana, who I believe is a FA so they had another excuse to keep Rowdy another year.
They did trade for Yelich and gave him a huge contract. They only have 64 million on the books for next season.
That’s the exception to the rule. And for 2 of those extension years, it looked bad.
Get back to me on the $64 mil for next year after their arbitration projections come to light..or they trade any number of them (likely starting with Burnes).
Since we’re getting more into financial stuff, there’s also the looming stadium upkeep and ownership’s threat of moving the team. My gut says they go even more cheap in order to cry poor so the taxpayers once again foot the bill (the entire state this time, not just the 5 counties who got stuck paying to build it).
Not sorry. Would rather have Pete.
1. I bet they would have.
2. Every MLB GM knows theres still massive question marks around Jackson…. 7.5% walk rate in AA … oof.
3. TBH, I think the Mets dodged a bullet with the old Brew Crew.
4. Id be surprised if Alonso doesnt get his extension.
Choirio is not going to be that good once he comes up. Kind of over rated
All due respect, but if BPBW can’t possibly know for a fact the Brewers would never trade Chourio, you can’t know he won’t be any good. I’ve seen fans begging to bring him up already this year, but again, based on their track record, I don’t see him on the big league roster (barring catastrophic injuries) until ’25. He’s 19. If not because of his age, then because the OF is kinda full right now. Yelich, Weimer, Frelick, Mitchell and (unfortunately) Taylor. Plus whatever flavor of the month random journeyman utility player they insist on plugging in somewhere for 30-40 games.
It’s entirely possible he’s another Brinson. He could also be really good too, with more development.
Weimer & Frelick are overrated. I would rather have Taylor in RF if he were actually given a real opportunity (like lately) under Counsell. But, Frelick and Weimer are Counsell guys. So, unfortunately, they will be given numerous chances to be below average and be the image or faces of the franchise.
As For Alonso, I hope Milwaukee stays away from him. He’s basically a right-handed base clogger Tellez with more consistent power.
Amazing how the Brewers started playing some more athletic players in the lineup coincided with their better team record over the past couple of months.
I’d trade Alonso only if I was getting an offer I couldn’t refuse. This would mean guys like Ethan Salas, Jackson Holiday, or Jackson Chourio would have to be put on the table. If the opposing teams don’t want to offer top tier prospects then thats fine, we don’t have to trade him. In the offseason then they can extend him if no trade works out. Knowing Eppler, he’ll trade Alonso for a combination of Darin Ruf, Deivi Garcia, and a bag of chips. Worst GM in the game
In spite of the fact that Pete insists he’s going to one day be a great defender, the value he provides is still a bit one-dimensional.
The same could be said for LFGMets. In spite of all the earnestness in the world, their only value is comedic, and it’s helped dramatically because he’s actually serious about all of it.
Ex: The article above makes a really great comp for what the Mets could likely get. He’s like “f-that, he’s worth the best prospect in the world! Seriously guys.”
Hey Raisinsss, per The Fielding Bible, Pete is tied for 4th in MLB among first basemen for DRS. fieldingbible.com/DRSLeaderboard
raisinsss: First of all, I hope your wife is OK. Power hitters tend to have lower averages, something in the .250 range. But I’d take a hitter like Alonso any day of the week. The Sox had a similar player in Jake Burger. He hit 25 Burger Bombs and is controls Le through 2025. Another idiotic move by the Sox’ front office. Alonso says he’s working on his defense. Time will tell. I hate the cubs but I give them credit for signing a player like Swanson. If Alonso played in the cubs band box, Alonso would have 80 HRs, several of which would land in those baskets. Take those away and those cheap HRs would become doubles.
Is DRS normalized?
What about other metrics?
What about other seasons?
No denying he’s a great hitter. But I think he’s peaked at being an average defender.
A very valuable player, 100%.
Also, savant has him at 34 hrs at wrigley this year. You have data on that assertion of 80 or nah.
No question mark, because I know the answer.
Mets fan here. Pete’s issue with defense isn’t his glove, but rather his decisioning on the field and the accuracy of his throw. I’d be glad to toss him over to the Cubs to get PCA back. His whining, pouting, and lack of hitting anything but HRs has become exhausting.
If the opposing teams don’t want to offer top tier prospects then thats fine, we don’t have to trade him.
=================================
That’s about the 100th time I’ve heard that in here. The other 99 times, it went badly for the team. Vazquez was a one-off case who did something crazy, but Pirate fans were talking like they were getting LAD’s two top prospects. Tiger fans with Boyd and Fulmer said the same thing.
You have two choice’s, and only two. Trade him or extend him. He really should’ve been traded at the deadline. Both Miami & SD were desperate for a 1B/DH.
Not desperate enough, apparently.
Only conclusion is that contrary to Max Scherzer’s farewell monologue, there is a real intent to compete in 2024.
Jackson holiday is worth an infinite amount of Pete Alonso’s.
=============================
Alonso is a fine player who will deliver about a 4.2 bWAR, for one season. My guess on Holliday is more like 20-25 bWAR over 6 seasons.
Any prospect would be lucky to have Alonso’s career for their entire career. Even the highest rated prospects struggle or fail or are derailed by injuries. Too many fans count those eggs before they hatch. Look no further than Sano and Buxton. They were both top 5 guys at the same time and while both have shown MVP quality at times neither have lived up to their hype
That pretty much applies to any slugger. The key would be to front load the contract so the later years aren’t as bad financially. Easier said than done i know.
Unless you’re a team that’s going to be paying a lot of tax, this doesn’t make any sense. The value of money actually decreases as time goes on. You’d be better to back load it and then take whatever money you were going to front load it with, put it in some safe investment to earn interest, then in year 3 or whenever he craters, add it into the trade when you ship him out.
Why trade him? This article seems to imply that the Mets should trade for a teams lone top prospect. Sorry, as a Mets fan he should cost at least 3 on a deep prospect team. He’s a proven slugger and good with the glove. With that said I hope they don’t trade him.
The article says “at least one of their top five prospects” so any Alonso trade would have been for a package of prospects.
IMO, a trade is extremely unlikely. Shipping out a homegrown star who says he loves being a Met would alienate the base. Heck, even trading Nimmo would sour a lot of Mets fans.
dankyank: Unfortunately I’ve heard this before. “I love this team, this is where I want to finish my career, the fans are great…” But then someone will offer him a king’s ransom and all loyalties are put aside. The only player I know of that didn’t go for the bigger bucks is Arenado.
I’ve also seen Ken Griffey Jr take a discount to play for the Reds. Hometown loyalty exists
Because they’re not going to be good
Alonso has all the markings of being a Chris Davis clone. HR’ers up front of his career, Ko’s in back. His upcoming big contract will kill some foolish GM’s career. No thanks!
That’s a terrible take. Comparing Alonzo to Chris Davis?
Rosenthal said the Cubs and Brewers reached out to the Mets, not that the Mets indicated to any team that Alonso was on the market.
Key phrase in entire Rosenthal article: “But from the Mets’ perspective, no deal was ever close.”
Alonso was never going anywhere.
The Angels did the same thing with Ohtani. They dangled him just before the deadline just to see what other teams would offer. There was no way they were going to trade him.
Multiple baseball media confirmed the Mets were shopping Alonso.
Multiple baseball media that are not clickbait have said other teams approached the Mets about Alonso.
One guy in the Post, what amounts to the National Enquirer, said the Mets dangled Alonso in trade talks.
You have to judge the sources and what actually happened.
The Mets never intended to and didn’t trade Alonso.
Rosenthal olney and Sherman all confirmed Mets did in fact try to trade Alonso. So you can live in whatever alternate universe you want but the reality is they tried trade him. Given the lack of available impact bats this winter his value won’t diminish much at all, so he’ll be dealt in December.
Supposedly the Mets wanted PCA back from the Cubs… uhhhhhh… No.
The seamstress vetoed that.
Doesn’t hurt to ask
Get Alonso and kick Mervis to DH? Uhh, can’t do that, because Ohtani will have DH locked down…
quonsetpoint: If you’re serious, you are a true cub fan. OK, you got a big name in Swanson. But that doesn’t mean the cubs are going to get Ohtani. The only way that has even a sniff of a chance is if the cubs start playing their games in Wrigley field in California.
Panda to the Cubs for Matt Mervis and Peter Crow-Armstrong? From a Cubs standpoint, much of what they’ll do this winter will be determined by if they make a serious play to bring back Bellinger and Candelaria.
What the Mets really need is SP. Mets don’t have much to get excited about in the majors or in the minors.
But MLB teams are loathe to trading away gems like that. Pitching, especially starters, are just too darn hard to come by. A team needs SP depth to run at least 7 or 8 arms deep. Yep, pitching is valuable, but it’s also the #1 target of Mr. Injury Bug.
As an aside, I believe Peterson is gonna surprise a lot of people next year.
Panda? I think you have the wrong bear.
Nope, we got PCA and you can’t have him back.
I don’t think Bellinger is gonna be a cub next year, but you never know. Before this season his goal was to play for anyone who would have him. The plan was to play one season with the sucker who signed him. Then he would leave the club and look to sign a large contract with a contender. Well, he is playing for a contender. If Ricketts – who I have a lot of respect for after saying he was going to open his wallet and he did – offers Bellinger a big contract, he might stay.
Alonso will certainly net more than Teoscar. No harm in checking his value. I suspect the two sides will come to an agreement this offseason.
Wow Little Stevie, your Mommy let you stay up all night, after you saw her pooping? Impressive!
Hey little stevie just saw glad that you were able to get get out of your high chair, that’s definitely an improvement, after filling your diaper up with poo!
Love fried chourio
The Mets have got to extend Pete Alonso: if they don’t I legitimately think the fan base will revolt. For a historical comparison, look no further than Tom Seaver. The Mets traded him midway through his age-32 season: the tail end of his prime, and the Mets didn’t break more than 1.4 million in attendance again for SEVEN YEARS.
For analysts screaming that he’ll regress or become a Chris Davis clone, Davis only had 4 seasons in his 13 year career with an OPS above .800. Pete has never had a season BELOW .800. Chris Davis’s best single season strike out percentage was 27.8%. Pete’s WORST single season percentage was 26.4%, which was during his Rookie of the Year season, so actually he has improved in that regard over time. Pete is clearly a better hitter than Davis.
If you actually believe what Scherzer (who is petty) and “insiders” say about the Mets not being interested in competing in 2024, which Cohen has refuted, then what about 2025? 2025 would be the first year of Alonso’s free agency, so if they do plan on being competitive then, then they will need him then.
If you think that the Mets need to trade him to recoup pitching prospects, who will actually be available? The above Brewers prospect was a hitter. Most of the prospects the Mets got back at the deadline were hitters. I am sure they tried to get pitchers but it seems like teams are holding on to their pitching prospects because of the epidemic of Tommy John surgeries and uncertainty of pitching injuries in baseball. Unless the Mets get back a haul of pitching like the Nationals got for Juan Soto, should they even consider trading for a position player prospect when their top EIGHT prospects are all position players and they already have SS, C, and CF locked into long term contracts?
At the rate he is going, Pete will likely become the all-time Met home run king by 2025. Nobody has hit more home runs in this league in the last 5 years than he has, and expecting that even a fraction of this level of production will come from unproven prospects is unrealistic. His ability to fire up the fan base is an intangible that will be sorely missed if they let him walk.
Would love to debate this further if anyone is interested in a good discussion!
One great karmic irony would be this scenario:
1) Alonso gets traded to another team, and
2) he gets his first hit on that team, and
3) an opposing team’s player throws the commemorative ball into the stands.
Mets FO and kool-aid drinking Mets fans overvalue a rental Dave Kingman who has HR power and not much else. He’s not Freeman nor Olson
Alonso for Pete Crow-Armstrong. I know. I know. I need to get over it
One year of Corbin Burnes for one year of Pete Alonso?