Cohen: Meet “still engaged” to Alonso

At the presser this afternoon to introduce you Juan SotoMets owner Steve Cohen said the team is “still committed.” Pietro Alonso (link via The Athletic’s Tim Britton and Will Sammon). This comes just days after president of baseball operations David Stearns said at the winter meetings that the team “would like to bring Pete back.”

There hasn’t been much public talk about Alonso’s free agency. Jon Heyman of the New York Post wrote last night that Alonso would have interest in joining the Yankees if the Mets don’t make a serious push to retain him. Ties between the Yanks and Alonso have been somewhat loosened, as reports pegged them as stronger suitors Christian Walker. Beyond New York teams, Alonso trade rumors have been speculative. The Nationals and Giants are among the teams that could use an impact bat at first base, but there is no firm indication that they have been involved.

Alonso rejected a qualifying offer last month. Aside from the Mets, every team would lose draft picks and/or international signing bonus cap space to add him. The Mets would give up the right to receive a compensatory pick, but that would only happen after the fourth round if he walked. It’s a minimal barrier.

The slugger is coming off a relatively bad year. Alonso hit .240/.329/.459, the first time in his career he had an OPS below .800. His 34 home runs represent a personal low in an entire season. It’s not an ideal time for a dip in his production, but there’s obvious value in a player whose floor is a 30+ homer showing. Alonso was incredibly durable and started 160 games last season. He heated up in the postseason, hitting .273/.431/.568 with four homers in 13 games.

As MLBTR explored in a post for Front Office subscribers last month, Alonso is a difficult free agent to evaluate. His reputation could lead his group to seek a deal near or at the top Matt Olson ($168 million) and Freddie Freemann ($162 million with deferrals). However, front offices have increasingly devalued this overall profile. Alonso has limited defensive and baserunning prowess, while his average and on-base percentage are mediocre.

Stearns preferred not to invest heavily in first base during his time leading baseball operations with the Brewers. Milwaukee ran payrolls that were a fraction of what the Mets do under Cohen, of course, so this isn’t necessarily an indication of how Stearns will operate in Queens. Even after paying Soto a record average annual value of $51 million, New York has an estimated luxury tax payroll of around $252 million (via RosterResource). It will likely end up topping $300 million by the end of the offseason. They could certainly accommodate Alonso financially. New York also needs to add at least one starter and will likely deepen the bullpen via another acquisition or two.