Mets have ‘queried’ Cardinals about potential Pete Alonso replacement

Sometimes an offseason turning point arrives in a single jolt, and Wednesday delivered one of those moments for the New York Mets. Pete Alonso, the face of the franchise’s power supply for half a decade, slipped away to Baltimore on a five-year, 155 million dollar deal that felt both predictable and surreal. The front office had braced for it, watching the bidding soar beyond the comfort zone of their valuation. Fans, though, woke up to a colder reality. The Polar Bear was gone, and now the Mets had to figure out what comes next.

A New Search Begins in Queens

The immediate question wasn’t complicated: who plays first base now? Mark Vientos offers the simplest internal solution, with Brett Baty sliding in at third and everyone hoping the gloves hold up. But even in December, you could sense the Mets weren’t ready to lock themselves into that alignment without exploring every corner of the market. They want someone steadier defensively, someone who doesn’t recreate the same problem that helped push them away from Alonso’s price tag in the first place.

That’s not a small point. Alonso’s bat is elite, but his glove has always been part of the internal calculus. The front office didn’t say it outright, but the numbers did. His negative nine outs above average last season weren’t just bad. They were the type that warp innings. If the Mets were going to pivot, they needed to pivot cleanly.