NY Mets free agency update: Mind the gap, Pete Alonso is no closer to signing

We’re not at the “beware of the closing doors” phase of Pete Alonso’s free agency. Those doors are very much open for the New York Mets to bring him back. The stage we’re at is “mind the gap” which according to Andy Martino remains fairly significant.

An exclusive deal Scott Boras handed to the Mets over the weekend wasn’t enough to have David Stearns rushing to sign Alonso. Stubborn? Heartless? Not a true Mets fan? We’re not quite there yet with the name-calling for Stearns. He earned the right to wait this out as long as it takes. Alonso isn’t going to re-sign until the terms get one of those coy Dexter Morgan-like smiles out of Stearns where you wonder if it’s actually real or an attempt to fit in.

Put on a cup of coffee, the Mets and Pete Alonso don’t look close to a reunion

The longer this drags out, the more chance there is for the Mets to go in a different direction. Fortunately, many of the alternatives are still available. Boras’ other big name client, Alex Bregman, hasn’t been getting much attention either. It seems like his best chance is for the Boston Red Sox to pony up some money or for the Detroit Tigers to do something silly like spend significant money on a free agent.

Bregman to the Mets hasn’t gained much steam at all. With the available pivot, it does feel like the free agency with Alonso is like a group of straphangers trying to exit one subway car with just as many trying to get on. It mimics Three Stooges Syndrome where everything gets stuck and nothing is accomplished.

There remains no better place for Alonso to be than in Queens next season. A surprise trip to the San Francisco Giants for a season isn’t going to help him better his chances of a lucrative multi-year deal starting in 2026. A deal with the Toronto Blue Jays would put him in an explosive lineup and yet the absence of playing first base for 98% of the year because of the presence of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is likely to have more teams view him as a DH rather than a first baseman. He thought it was rough getting paid as a first baseman. Try being someone who doesn’t play the field much.

The final destination of this train is still a few stops away. From an out-of-towners perspective, we’ve left the comfort of numbered streets in Manhattan and gone to what feels like randomly named ones in another borough. We’ve been assured by a man in a uniform we’re headed in the right direction. The problem we run into is it’s October 31, April 1, and January 25 (that’s National Opposite Day) all in one.

Mets fans want to believe Alonso returning is inevitable. Mind the gap. Anyone can get their foot caught in it and trip.