Why the Mets Never Made Pete Alonso an Offer Before He Signed With Orioles

Pete Alonso is signing with the Orioles on a five-year, $155 million deal.

Pete Alonso is joining the Orioles. / Brad Mills-Imagn Images

The Mets will be without Pete Alonso next season, as the All-Star first baseman agreed to sign with the Orioles on a five-year, $155 million deal. A homegrown player, Alonso had spent his entire career in New York with the Mets up until this point, and will now be departing for Baltimore.

This is the second major loss for the Mets in free agency this offseason. Earlier this week, All-Star closer Edwin Díaz left the Mets for the Dodgers, where he signed to a three-year, $69 million contract.

Not only did the Mets fail to re-sign Alonso, but they didn’t even make him a formal offer according to beat reporters Anthony DiComo and Joel Sherman. Per Sherman, the Mets never made an offer to Alonso because he began getting bids with more dollars and years than was in their “comfort zone” to offer him.

This is a significant changeup from a year ago, when owner Steve Cohen outbid everyone to sign Juan Soto to a record-breaking 15-year, $765 million deal. This time around, the Mets didn’t even offer Alonso an extension because his price was getting too high.

Cohen previously apologized to Mets fans at the end of their disappointing 2025 season, taking accountability for the team failing to make the postseason a season after a National League championship series appearance. The Mets started the season with the best record in MLB at 45-24, and even as they tailed off during the summer, they still had over a 90% chance of making the postseason in early September. Ultimately, an eight-game losing streak in September as well as losing five of their final eight games cost them the chance to play October baseball.

While the Mets are looking to rebound from that disastrous ending, letting Díaz and Alonso walk isn’t making many Mets fans optimistic. After all, Alonso was a bright spot for New York, slashing .272/.374/.524 for 170 hits, 87 runs, 38 home runs and 126 RBIs. He led the team in RBIs and doubles and finished second in batting average, slug rate, hits and home runs while making another All-Star Game.

Instead, the Mets will be going in a different direction with several areas of their team in 2026. They’ll hope their decisions pay off, or Cohen might be typing another apology come the end of next September.

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