When Pete Alonso went free agent, everyone thought—in no time, the New York Mets would re-sign him. Then, the Juan Soto signing happened, and people still thought he was coming back. And why not? Polar Bear is a homegrown Met and has a huge fan following. Of course, he, with their newly joined Juan Soto, would be a great force on the field, but the Mets surprisingly aren’t really in the Alonso sweepstakes anymore. Jon Heyman mentioned last week that there was a ‘sizeable’ gap between Alonso’s ask and the Mets’ offer!

Heyman said, “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.” Turns out, it’s a huge gap indeed, with the Mets having offered their homegrown star just a mere $90 million! The number that Alonso and his agent Scott Boras are chasing is around $200 million. So of course, the deal is nowhere close. Now, this gap that Heyman initially mentioned was regarded as the money aspect of it. However, it turns out there is more to it, and Heyman gave an insight into the Pete Alonso drama during his live show with Bleacher Report on January 1.

Not just dollar signs; it’s the calendar pages that matter for Pete Alonso

Heyman, as noted in a post by Dan Bertels of the New York Post, said, “Are the Mets willing to give five years for Pete Alonso? I do think the years are the hangup right now on the Pete Alonso situation. They’re going to figure out the money in terms of dollars per year, but it is the years that we are talking about.” So, it’s not just dollar signs; it’s also the calendar pages that matter. It does make sense, though: Pete Alonso just turned 30, and right-handed first basemen don’t always age like fine wine.

There are performance dips that happen during the mid-thirties too. Even so, Heyman sounds confident that the parties might work something out. And he’s not the only one—even sportscaster Evan Roberts subscribes to the sentiment. Roberts mentioned, “What we’re clearly seeing here is that they want him back at a price. They’re not giving him six years. They’re not giving him maybe five years. And if Pete eventually sees that the market hasn’t developed and gives in, he’ll be a New York Met.”

So, a three- or four-year deal seems to be the sweet spot that the Mets are aiming at. This would make Alonso around 33 as the contract wraps up, but if the market isn’t in his favor, he has to adjust his expectations.

The short and sensible way forward for Polar Bear

Reds Hall of Famer Sean Casey talked about Pete Alonso’s free agency at the Mayor’s Office. He mentioned that Alonso might need to face the reality that he has to take a lesser deal. For him, the deal that the NY Mets gave for three years and $90 million is the maximum the team will give Alonso. “I don’t think they want to get to that fourth year. So I think, you know, whoever’s out there, I think Alonso wants at least five years… And I don’t think the Mets are going to be willing to give him that.”

Well, Alonso’s first baseman position doesn’t bring much defensive value to the team. And his batting averages have declined over the last two seasons. Making the Mets reluctant to commit to a long deal. Right now, the path forward for Alonso could be a short contract with an opt-out clause. It’s what Cody Bellinger did with the Chicago Cubs: a three-year, $80 million contract with an opt-out. This way even Alonso can get a chance to prove himself and potentially get a better deal the next year.

This way Alonso can get the chance to test the free-agency market again and also maintain that flexibility. If no better offers come, he could let the contract run its course. In all ways, it seems like a shorter deal might be his best option, both for stability now and for his future. Where do you think Alonso will sign—will he remain a Met? Let us know in the comments.