Pete Alonso Should Look to Yoenis Cespedes' Free Agency if He Wants to Return to Mets

Pete Alonso should look back at Yoenis Cespedes' free agency situation with the Mets from 2016 and 2017 if he truly wants to return to Queens.

Oct 18, 2024; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets first base Pete Alonso (20) reacts at first base with Los Angeles Dodgers first base Freddie Freeman (5) in the eighth inning during game five of the NLCS for the 2024 MLB playoffs at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

It's not always as simple as "if you want to be somewhere, you'll be somewhere."

Baseball is a business.

So yes, of course the New York Mets want to keep first baseman Pete Alonso, their homegrown star. And of course, Alonso wants to return to the place where he has spent his entire professional baseball career after the Mets drafted him in 2016.

But again, it's not so simple.

At Amazin' Day at Citi Field on Saturday, Mets owner Steve Cohen was very candid that they're "exhausted" and don't like how the negotiations have gone with Alonso and agent Scott Boras, nor do they like what has been presented to them as it has been way too beneficial in favor of the latter group.

“We made a significant offer to Pete,” Cohen said. “He’s entitled to explore his market. That’s what he is doing. Personally, this has been an exhausting conversation and negotiation. I mean, Soto was tough — this is worse.

“A lot of it is, we made a significant offer … I don’t like the structures that are being presented back to us. It’s highly asymmetric against us. And I feel strongly about it. I will never say no. There’s always the possibility. But the reality is we’re moving forward. And as we continue to bring in players, the reality is it becomes harder to fit Pete into what is a very expensive group of players that we already have. That’s where we are. And I am being brutally honest.

“I don’t like the negotiations. I don’t like what’s been presented to us. Listen, maybe that changes. Certainly, I’ll always stay flexible. If it stays this way, I think we are going to have to get used to the fact that we may have to go forward with the existing players that we have.”

Translation: Cohen just spent nearly $800 million to land Juan Soto, another Boras client. Since then all he has been hearing about from Mets fans is Alonso.

Cohen made his message loud and clear to the fans on Saturday; Never say never but get ready for a reality where Alonso is in a new uniform. Even Cohen, a multi-billionaire, has his limits too, clearly.

Boras later responded to Cohen's blunt comments about the Alonso negotiations via a statement to Will Sammon of The Athletic.

“Pete’s free-agent contract structure request are identical to the standards and practices of other clubs who have signed similarly situated qualifying-offer/all-star level players,” Boras said. “Nothing different. Just established fairness standards.”

It wouldn't be surprising, and this is speculation, if Alonso had some hard feelings towards the Mets. He has been a fan favorite for quite a period of time and if he remains with the Mets will be the all-time home run leader in franchise history, among other categories. He has done a lot for the New York Mets from 2019-2024, not to mention saved their season with his dramatic homer in Game 3 of the Wild Card round last October.

On the Mets side, they have offered him a reported three-year deal in the $75 million range with opt-outs, which he rejected. They also offered him a market value seven-year, $158 million contract extension in 2023, which he rejected while under different representation.

Now, Alonso's market has not been as hot as he anticipated given he is a perennial 40 home run hitter and those types of players don't grow on trees. That said, he is 30-years-old and teams just aren't looking to give a power-hitting corner infielder a long-term deal.

Alonso has been talking to the Toronto Blue Jays and also met with the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday, as Mets On SI first reported. Nothing appears to be close as all has been quiet since Friday.

The Mets are looking at Detroit Tigers first baseman Spencer Torkelson as a trade option and internal candidates as well.

The door looks like it's shut on Alonso reuniting with the Mets. Especially after public statements from Cohen and Boras on Saturday.

But the door can be shut until it's not.

Maybe Alonso should look at retired outfielder Yoenis Cespedes' free agency situation from nine years ago, where the then Wilpon owned Mets brought him back on a three-year, $75 million deal with opt-outs. Cespedes was also 30 at the time, like Alonso.

The Mets were fresh off a World Series appearance, which Cespedes basically carried them to in 2015, uplifting the entire lineup into being a force once he arrived at the trade deadline that summer.

Alonso is way more durable and reliable than Cespedes ever was. Cespedes spent time on the injured list in 2016, but still had a strong year and helped the wounded Mets win a Wild Card spot in the NL.

The result, Cespedes opted out and cashed in on a four-year, $110 million deal to stay with the Mets. Obviously, Cespedes' deal turned out to be a nightmare given his antics, but it all worked out well for him financially after he decided to take a short-term deal in 2016 and use that opt-out the following year to ink a lucrative contract in 2017.

Alonso might not have a choice but to try and do the same at this point with spring training fast approaching.

Read More:

- Carlos Mendoza Offers Telling Update on Mets' Dedniel Núñez, Ronny Mauricio

- Scott Boras Responds to Steve Cohen's Assertion on Pete Alonso

- Steve Cohen Gets Brutally Honest About Pete Alonso: ‘Soto Was Tough, This Is Worse’