Correct me if I’m wrong, I asked Pete Alonso on Tuesday afternoon, but you haven’t yet been asked about your contract situation since the Braves extended Austin Riley, right?
“No,” Alonso said, meaning he had not yet been asked by a reporter.
Well, have he and the Mets talked about an extension?
(After all, Alonso and Riley both broke into the league in 2019 and have emerged as stars for their respective clubs. In the wake of Riley’s ten-year, $212 million deal last week, it was natural for Mets fans to wonder when their Polar Bear’s time would come).
“No,” Alonso said before pivoting like a veteran. “I'm really happy for Austin. He's played his ass off. He won a World Series with them. Him being from Mississippi being a Braves fan growing up, I'm just really happy for him. It's obviously well deserved, and he's a great human being as well. So I'm happy for him and his family. That's huge. He worked hard and he should be really proud of himself.”
Ok, but does Alonso want to talk with the Mets about a contract of his own?
“I mean, they haven't approached me about it,” Alonso said. “I haven't approached them about it. We're just really just trying to win a World Championship and, I mean, just focusing on the season.”
Got it. No talks yet. Would Alonso be open to an early extension, or does he want to one day experience free agency (which would come for him after the 2024 season)?
“Again, I just want to make the best business decision for my family,” he said. “And I mean, honestly, the opportunity for that prospect hasn't arisen yet. So right now I'm just playing as well as I can to help this team win.”
Good answers. Mets officials were no more eager to discuss the issue than Alonso. They had just destroyed the Braves in a key series and are charging toward October, and this was my question?
I’ll just note that the Mets are in a unique situation with their own free agents after the season. The first two questions in front of them are whether it will be possible to retain Jacob deGrom and Edwin Diaz, not to mention Brandon Nimmo and Taijuan Walker.
Logic would dictate that the team will need to deal with those issues before deciding whether to make Alonso a Met for life.
Right now, they're all just trying to deal with the goal of winning a World Series. As they should. But now you know there haven’t been in-season contract talks with Alonso.