MLB rumors: 3 teams that probably wish they signed NY Mets slugger Pete Alonso

After the Juan Soto storyline, the biggest for the New York Mets this offseason was whether Pete Alonso would return or not. A flood of Mets rumors about their standoff with each other highlighted the bulk of the wintry days in Flushing. The two sides eventually came to an agreement on what was a fair deal. Alonso got his money now and an opportunity to prove he deserves much more.

Alonso’s return to the Mets was made a lot easier because of a lack of interest from other ball clubs. First base isn’t a premium position. Teams will gladly move a declining outfielder there or pay bottom dollar for a roving veteran. During his time with the Milwaukee Brewers, David Stearns routinely looked for bargains at the position.

His Mets return made our ball club a much better one. However, in doing so, he left a few teams questioning whether they should have gone the extra mile to cage the Polar Bear.

1) San Francisco Giants

A big time slugger seems to be on the wish list for the San Francisco Giants every offseason. Despite once employing the single season home run champion, their ballpark isn’t exactly welcoming to those who live or die by the long ball. They had an opportunity to add Alonso this offseason. Instead, they chose to upgrade at shortstop with a rather ridiculous signing of Willy Adames.

Adames was a rumored Mets free agent target and Alonso alternative. The plan was to make him a third baseman in hopes of improving the defense with Mark Vientos over at first base. Holy dodged bullet, Batman! Through 264 plate appearances, Adames is hitting .203 with 5 home runs. We know the deal with Vientos.

The Giants chose to give light-hitting LaMonte Wade Jr. the benefit of the doubt. Proven that he can hit .300 in the majors, this year has been the complete opposite. With a .167 batting average through 169 trips to the plate, the Giants decided it was time to DFA him and sign Dominic Smith.

An investment in Alonso over Adames would have left the Giants looking for a shortstop alternative. Surely, a glove-first player with even C- level offensive production would have been a better solution. 

2) Seattle Mariners

Cal Raleigh is proving you can still put up power numbers while wearing a Seattle Mariners uniform. An even more ruthless ballpark for power hitters, the Seattle Mariners were less of a rumored destination for Alonso as much as a speculative one. An inability to hit cost them a playoff berth last year. Their tremendous pitching staff went to waste due to this shortcoming.

It’s a little ironic that they ended up with Rowdy Tellez as their primary first baseman. A guy Stearns had with the Brewers, he’s doing his usual thing at an even lower level. Through 146 plate appearances he has hit .207/.260/.437 with a somewhat surprising 9 home runs. He had 13 in each of the last two seasons.

Seattle failed its fans by not making that big splash in the offseason. This is a team that seems stubborn on doing the same thing over and over again and expecting more wins than they had the previous year. Things have gone well for them to start the season. Imagine how far out in front of the AL West they could be if Alonso was hitting in the middle of the order.

At the moment, the Mariners may not have a whole lot of regret about the situation. When the trade deadline comes and they need to give up prospects for a player like Josh Bell who’ll hit .180 without much pop, they can look back at the offseason and whether or not Alonso could have been a player to push them over the top.

3) Houston Astros

The Houston Astros knew they needed a first base upgrade. After the disastrous tenure of Jose Abreu, they were willing to sign another aging player at the position. This time they chose Christian Walker. The other top first baseman in free agency this past offseason, he has been far less than the Astros were hoping for.

Walker’s first 239 trips to the plate have included a .212/.276/.369 slash line. He has 8 doubles, 8 home runs, and 27 RBI. These are fine numbers for a number seven hitter. Walker was a marquee signing by the Astros this offseason. The three-year $60 million deal is off to a bad start and feels like déjà vu with a little less calamity than the Abreu deal.

The Astros weren’t waiting around for Alonso as they inked Walker days before Christmas, perhaps an ode to the holiday or at least a very good PR stunt for the social marketing team. Walker was an acceptable Alonso alternative for many Mets fans. Three straight Gold Gloves alone made him worth consideration.

It would take a miracle for Walker to end up with numbers anything close to the pace Alonso is on. His strikeout rate of 27.6% is ridiculously high for a guy who was under 20% in back-to-back prime seasons during 2022 and 2023. Age seems to have caught up with Walker quicker than desired. Already 34, the Astros’ apparent disinterest in Alonso could be one reason why they’re neck-and-neck with the Mariners for an AL West crown.