NY Mets: How Pete Alonso could make an All-Star ballot run

Despite sitting atop the NL East division, the New York Mets did not have a single player included in the top five polling for any position when the first update was released on Monday.

A slow offensive season has affected the entire league,  but the Mets have been hit especially hard. New York currently sits 28th in the MLB in home runs, 29th in runs scored, and 18th in OPS.

On top of the hitting struggles, the Mets have also been bombarded with injuries. All-Star candidates Jeff McNeil (31 games played), Brandon Nimmo (20 games), and Michael Conforto (33 games) all have missed substantial time this season.

One Met who has remained relatively healthy though is 2019 All-Star Pete Alonso. Alonso should theoretically be a solid candidate to rank in the top three in All-Star voting at first base.

He’s been an extremely well-rounded offensive force for the Mets this season. Amongst eligible first basemen in the National League, Alonso ranks 5th in AVG, 5th in HRs, 4th in RBI, and 4th in OPS.

Despite this, he is nowhere to be found in the top five ranked players in voting so far. This begs the question: what does Alonso need to do to get recognized by the fans?

Adding some long bombs to the Mets star’s June hot streak

Pete Alonso has already taken his performance at the plate to a new level in June. So far this month, Alonso is slashing .304 AVG/.365 OBP/.522 SLG, all of which are higher than his season averages of .268 AVG/.345 OBP/.472 SLG.

Additionally, 11 of his 34 RBI have come in the 13 games he’s played this month, leading the Mets in June.

The one thing still missing is the long ball. Alonso’s ability to take the ballyard is what made him a star in the MLB. In his rookie year, he memorably set the rookie home run record with 53 long balls.

In order to make a run in All-Star voting, the Polar Bear is going to need to get his power back.

He has three home runs in June so far, but just 10 on the season. If he can re-cement himself as the home run king that he has been before, a top-three finish in phase one of All-Star voting isn’t out of the question.

In 2019, Alonso had four games with multiple home runs. In a shortened 2020 season, he had three. This season he’s had just one so far, on June 8th in a 3-10 loss against the Baltimore Orioles.

If Alonso can have another multi home run game that came in a signature win for the Mets, he could grab national headlines and help gain momentum in the All-Star vote.

Third place Anthony Rizzo only holds 12% of the vote; a number that Alonso could surely pass if he can get even better in June.

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To get there, he’s going to have to go yard a few more times this month.