Pete Alonso addresses possibly spending entire career with Mets

On the same day that the New York Mets retired the No. 16 jersey once worn by ace pitcher Dwight "Doc" Gooden, All-Star first baseman Pete Alonso revealed he'd enjoy going down as a one-club man. 

"That is definitely something I have thought about and something that would be so incredibly special," Alonso said about possibly spending his entire career with the Mets, as shared by Mike Puma of the New York Post. "It’s something that in today’s game is super rare. Very select few people get to do that." 

Alonso made his MLB debut roughly five years ago, has featured only for the Mets at the highest level and has hit more regular-season home runs (198) than any other player since the spring of 2019. The slugger, who turns 30 years old in December, remains on track to reach free agency after the ongoing campaign, and it was suggested as recently as last week that Mets owner Steve Cohen could allow club president of baseball operations David Stearns to shop Alonso ahead of this summer's trade deadline if the team has a losing record through the All-Star break. 

While the Mets began the season at 0-5, they entered Monday holding a 7-8 record heading into a three-game home series versus the Pittsburgh Pirates (11-5). 

During his chat with Puma, Alonso mentioned how former Mets captain David Wright and New York Yankees legend Derek Jeter enjoyed the "honor" of starting and finishing their big-league careers with a single team. Alonso also said he "one hundred percent" knows he's "beloved" by Mets fans, some of whom chanted his name throughout Sunday's 2-1 win over the Kansas City Royals.

"But over the course of the amount of time those guys up there with their numbers retired, those guys have done it for way longer than me," Alonso added. "For me to think of that, yeah, it would be special, but it’s not in the forefront of my mind because I want to play as long as those guys up there." 

Alonso insisted a couple of times that "it would be special" to one day have his number retired by the Mets. To reach such a goal, the "Polar Bear" will have to re-sign with the club once contract negotiations resume after the season.