New York Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns knew just as much as the next unsuspecting person when assessing Pete Alonso’s future.
The slugging first baseman’s free agency process was one of the longer, “exhausting” ordeals of Major League Baseball’s offseason. Ineffective negotiations and declined deals lent to the idea that Alonso would not be back for a seventh season with the Mets, with reports suggesting such a thought as recently as late January.
“I didn’t know,” Stearns said on Wednesday. “At that point in time, I would’ve said that there was a real possibility he was going to end up elsewhere.”
The lack of an external market ultimately allowed cooler heads to prevail. Last week the Mets got back to the negotiating table with Alonso and his agent, Scott Boras, and agreed to a two-year, $54 million deal that includes an opt-out after the 2025 campaign.
A week after reports of the agreement first emerged, the Mets made it official on Wednesday; the first official day of spring training down in Port St. Lucie, FL.
“We just wanted to ensure he knew that we wanted him back, and I think he wanted to express the same to us,” Stearns said. “He wanted to express his desire to come back. It was important for both sides. These were long negotiations. A lot of back and forth. If you’re going to make a deal, I think it’s important for both sides to really feel and hear that both sides are very invested.”
Alonso was at Mets facilities earlier this week to complete his physical, which was the final objective to clear before the signing was made official. He will now return to his normal spot in the middle of New York’s lineup as one of the league’s most threatening power hitters behind the likes of Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto.
“I think Pete is thrilled to be back,” Stearns said. “You could see the genuine excitement he had to be back in this building.”
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