NY Yankees passed on signing Pete Alonso, could steal a different NY Mets fan favorite

The crosstown rival New York Yankees recently signed veteran first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, which pretty much eliminates the possibility of them signing New York Mets slugger Pete Alonso. While the Pinstripes likely are not going to try and steal Alonso from the Mets, there is another fan-favorite Mets player the Yankees could still go after. That’s veteran infielder Jose Iglesias.

Despite being a minor league signee last off-season, Iglesias turned out to be a huge surprise for the Mets. He batted .337/.381/.448 with a .362 wOBA, and 137 wRC+. Iglesias only had a 4.1% walk rate, nor did he hit for much power with four homers in 291 plate appearances and a .111 isolated slugging percentage, but rarely struck out with a 13.4% K%. Along with being an above-average batter, Iglesias provided strong defense at the hot corner and the keystone. He had +1 defensive run saved and out above average at 2B, along with +4 DRS and +2 OAA at third base.

Iglesias instantly became a Mets fan favorite. Not only did he turn out to be one of the Mets’ best players in the second half of the year, but also because of his song “OMG” which he performed after games. The veteran infielder ended the season on a 22 game hit streak, and provided the Mets with ten more hits during the Postseason. However, there are multiple reasons why the Mets won’t sign Iglesias, and the Yankees could steal him this off-season.

As fellow writer Brian Germinaro recently wrote, the Mets already have a replacement in Ronny Mauricio. Mauricio missed all of 2024 due to an ACL tear, but he should be good to go next season. Mauricio is only 23, and while he didn’t do much in his brief debut, he did great at Triple-A during ‘23. Through 532 plate appearances, Mauricio batted .292/.346/.506 with a .369 wOBA and 108 wRC+. Mauricio had a 20/20 season, with 23 homers and 24 steals. Mauricio was still a top 100 prospect per Baseball Prospectus entering the 2024 campaign.

Free agent and Mets fan favorite Jose Iglesias could depart to the crosstown rival Yankees.

Mauricio isn’t the only young infielder the Mets have on hand. Luisangel Acuna made a fantastic first impression, with a dozen hits, including six extra-base hits (three homers, two doubles, and a triple) through his first 40 MLB plate appearances. Although Acuna did not hit well at Triple-A last year with just a .654 OPS, .295 wOBA, and 69 wRC+, 2025 will only be his age-23 campaign, and still stole 40 bases.

The Yankees also need more infield depth. Gleyber Torres, a staple of the Yankees’ middle infield picture since 2018, will likely sign elsewhere. Anthony Volpe covers shortstop, and Jazz Chisholm will likely take over either second or third base. However, that only leaves DJ LeMahieu, who had a negative fWAR and 52 wRC+ last year, and utility man Oswaldo Cabrera as their best options to fill out the rest of their infield.

Even if the Yankees go out and sign another big fish like Alex Bregman, Iglesias still fills a need the Yankees have. They likely won’t be satisfied with LeMahieu and Cabrera as their utility infield options next year. Unlike the Mets, they don’t have any young and upcoming infielders who could fill that role either, unless they think former top prospect Oswald Peraza is capable of doing so.

Alonso may be off the table for the Yankees, but it’s quite possible Jose Iglesias heads from Queens to the Bronx. The Mets have much less of a need for Iglesias than the Yankees, even if they go after another big free agent. It’ll be sad to see Iglesias go (especially if he ends up signing with the Yankees), but the fit for the Yanks makes sense.