What’s preventing Mets, Pete Alonso from reuniting in MLB free agency

While we’ve said here the Mets and Pete Alonso need to figure it out, there is said to be a sizable gap in talks at the moment. That doesn’t mean he’s gone, as the Mets have closed big gaps before (see Juan Soto below), but only that no quick deal appears at hand. The Mets are considering other options at first base (and also third base to a degree), and one fallback alternative could be moving Mark Vientos to 1B and giving Brett Baty/Ronny Mauricio/kids a shot at 3B. Weighing in Alonso’s favor is that he’s a Mets fan favorite. Weighing generally against him: he had a down year for him, and power isn’t as coveted this year. (While we’ve argued for more lineup protection for Soto, it’s also possible that only Aaron Judge or Shohei Ohtani could truly protect Soto.) Alonso never really seemed likely for the Yankees since they already have great right-handed sluggers – Judge and Giancarlo Stanton – signed long-term. Perhaps one reason the possibility got extra publicity was over Hal Steinbrenner’s Alonso links. Not only did they both support the Tunnel to Towers charity, but both are Gators (Steinbrenner got his MBA at Florida) and Tampa residents. Ultimately, though, Steinbrenner, as is his way, let GM Brian Cashman make the call. Yankees analytics people preferred spending on Cody Bellinger and Paul Goldschmidt. Bellinger, while initially choosing to return to the Cubs, ultimately was almost thrilled to become a Yankee once it became clear the Cubs were determined to deal him. Yankees people love Alex Bregman but question whether Yankee Stadium is right for him. It’s possible they hope D.J. LeMahieu can regiain health to fill 3B. Gleyber Torres turned down the Nats because he didn’t want to play 3B. Andrew Chafin is high on the Yankees’ list of lefty pen targets. Tim Hill is on it, too. Good for the Mets and Sean Manaea to agree at $75M over three. He’d turned down the $67M from the A’s that went to his friend Luis Severino. Manaea’s market was otherwise limited due to the qualifying offer/draft choice, which is valued between $5M and $20M depending on the team. The uber-talented Nick Pivetta has been connected to the Reds, Jays and others, but that qualifying offer could complicate things. Charlie Morton is a frontline starter who’d return at 41 for the right team. Beyond the Juan Soto also-rans, the Tigers are said to have money to spend and at least one big move to make. (Amazingly, their postseason roster cost a paltry $18M.) The five-team bidding on Soto started between the $440M he declined from Nats in 2022 and $500M. The Mets trailed one team’s first bid even with their initial second bid. So, it was quite a comeback to get that done!