NEW YORK – With the New York Mets stumbling through the first third of the season, the question of Pete Alonso’s future, the biggest storyline surrounding the club, has changed to reflect the struggles of the time.
The question for a long time was: Will Alonso re-sign with the Mets after the season?
The question now is: Will Alonso be traded in two months?
“We’re still a long way off,” Alonso told The Athletic before the Mets game on Sunday. “We have at least two months. That’s a lot of time. There are many games left. It’s not like the trade deadline is 10 days away. “So I feel like we have a lot of time to make up ground and then also show who we are as a team and what our potential can be.”
Alonso said no thoughts about the trade deadline have crossed his mind. Similarly, Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns said in his most recent public comments that the front office has yet to discuss his trade deadline strategy.
But with the Mets (21-30) losing five straight and losing 12 of their last 15 games during a difficult month of May, everyone else is already thinking and talking about it, especially when it comes to Alonso.
Pete Alonso on his future: “The only thing I can control is my attitude and my game.” (Mike Stobe//Keynote USA/Getty Images)
The deadline to make changes is July 30. But nothing prevents teams from making moves long before then. And across the league, teams typically start seriously evaluating their personnel around Memorial Day weekend, which is now.
The Mets have several players with expired contracts who could be trade candidates (Luis Severino, JD Martínez and José Quintana are some of them), but no one stands out like Alonso. The first baseman is a local star, but he’s 29 years old in a position that doesn’t always see sluggers age gracefully. Those dynamics make for a truly compelling case.
“The only thing I can control is my attitude and my game; “I can’t really control those decisions,” Alonso said. “But I love this place. I love putting on the uniform. Obviously this place is very special to me. But the only thing I can control is my level of effort on a day-to-day basis and how I can impact the game on the field.”
Alonso entered Sunday with 12 home runs and a .234/.308/.468 line. His 126 OPS+ is slightly higher than last year’s (124 OPS+). Alonso fell during the first week of May, but since then he has improved. Despite the Mets’ slump, Alonso is hitting .281/.333/.516 with three home runs in his last 15 games.
Alonso said the Mets can change the external narrative about the club if they get some wins. Realistically, though, the team probably has only a couple of weeks to turn things around before the front office has to consider making some tough decisions.
“The best way to solve it is to go out and make it happen between the lines,” Alonso said. “That’s really it. Yeah, we haven’t been playing well. But the only way to solve it is to win.”
The Mets haven’t looked good in any facet recently. Their offense has been inconsistent. His bullpen has been leaking. His defense has been poor. They have missed main opener Kodai Senga. Closer Edwin Díaz’s struggles have resulted in a handful of losses. They’re not sure who their third baseman is. Their main players (beyond Alonso, there are Francisco Lindor, Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil) have not had good results. The list can go on and has also raised questions about next year.
How far along are the Mets really? It seems like an appropriate question for future free agents like Alonso.
“We have a great number of prospects, a great number of young people,” Alonso said. “If you look at Brett (Baty), (Francisco Álvarez), Christian Scott, Mark (Vientos)… those are great young men who will be great Major League players for a long time. And I know we have a lot of good arms, great position players at the upper levels. As for the outlook, we are in very good hands.”
Alonso continued.
“Obviously, we have one of the best shortstops from 2015 on, in this era,” he said of Lindor. “His numbers, his achievements, he is a rare talent. You just don’t see that every day. And he will be here. Nim will be here for a long time. He’s just a phenomenal player overall; he can hit, play defense, run the bases…he has tools. Senga is here; What he showed last year is that he is a frontline ace. Plus, we have some older guys like Tylor Megill (David Peterson), who can throw the ball really well.
“I mean, we always have a chance. Plus, having Steve (Cohen, the Mets owner) willing to spend money, and let’s say we get different free agents or something… we always have a chance. It’s just a matter of showing it between the lines.”
For Alonso and the Mets, the trade deadline is still two months away, but the urgency and questions are here early.
(Top photo by Pete Alonso: Mike Stobe//Keynote USA/Getty Images)
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