Pete Alonso Rumors: 'Plenty of Teams' Like Mets Star on Contract Between $100M-$125M

As veteran first baseman Pete Alonso hits free agency for the first time in his career, it sounds like the New York Mets are going to face some stiff competition if they hope to retain the star slugger.

According to ESPN's Kiley McDaniel, there are "plenty of other teams that like Alonso as a player in the $100 million to $125 million range."

McDaniel pointed out that those teams eyeing Alonso are unlikely to "give him the deals that first basemen Paul Goldschmidt (five years, $130 million) and Freddie Freeman (six years, $162 million) signed recently."

Alonso was among the players to receive a qualifying offer from the Mets on Monday that would pay him $21.05 million for the 2025 season. He is likely to decline the offer and test the open market. If he signs elsewhere, New York would receive draft pick compensation. The team also extended qualifying offers to pitchers Sean Manaea and Luis Severino.

Alonso has been one of the faces of the Mets since he made his MLB debut in 2019. The four-time All-Star hit over 30 home runs in five out of his six years in New York, including a career-high 53 as a rookie.

After helping to lead the Mets on a surprising run to the NLCS where they lost to the eventual World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, Alonso expressed his love for the team but didn't indicate what his mindset was as he approached free agency.

"Honestly, I haven't really thought of anything [beyond that]," he said. "I love this team. I love this organization. This fan base has treated not just myself, but my family so, so well. Right now, I'm just thinking of the group. We'll see what happens. We'll cross that bridge when we get there. But I love New York. I love this team. I love playing in Queens. This group is really special, and the memories that we've created together are just -- wow. This is why we play baseball."