Pete Alonso rides Silver Slugger momentum into already potent NY Mets free agency

As if Scott Boras wasn’t already one of baseball’s best villains, he’s about to spend the first night of MLB free agency putting together puns about polar bears and silver. Pete Alonso has finally won a Silver Slugger in what could possibly be his final year with the New York Mets.

The term Silver Slugger seems built for a player like Alonso. Undoubtedly one of the best power hitters in the sport, he has been overlooked in the past multiple times either because someone at the position hit more home runs or put together a better all-around season. He finally beat the competition in 2025, putting an end to some of the familiar candidates who seem to always win the award.

Conveniently for Alonso, the win came over Freddie Freeman and Matt Olson. Freeman won each year from 2019-2021 while with the Atlanta Braves. Olson took home the award in 2023. It’s notable because each of them received a contract Alonso is going to try and compete with in free agency this offseason.

Pete Alonso can now compare himself more closely into the same class as Freddie Freeman and Matt Olson

Alonso is a far less effective defensive player than Freeman and Olson. Olson won the 2025 Gold Glove at first base while criticism of Alonso’s defensive play seems to have reached a new height. The words “run prevention” are essentially a four-letter word declaration against bringing him back.

The Silver Slugger win couldn’t have come at a better time for Alonso. The first of his career, he’s in a free agent market this time around with no qualifying offer penalty attached to him and one of his best overall campaigns at the plate. His 38 home runs fell short of a few seasons from his past. However, his league-best 41 doubles topped his previous high set the season prior at 31.

The Polar Bear’s Silver Slugger victory was less about the number of home runs he hit and more about everything he did at the plate. His 126 RBI was a new personal-best.

Among the discussions this offseason for Alonso will be whether or not a team will sign him to be more than a DH. Oddly enough, if he had that role for the Mets in 2025, he probably would have finished third in the Silver Slugger. Winner Shohei Ohtani as well as finalist Kyle Schwarber had arguably superior seasons.

Right now, Alonso isn’t competing in the Ohtani or Schwarber markets even if the latter is seen as a potential alternative/replacement. It’s the recent Freeman and Olson contracts he’ll try to match or overtake. The Silver Slugger victory should only help his case.