Why Mets didn't trade Pete Alonso this past offseason

SNY's Andy Martino provided insight into why Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns didn't make Pete Alonso available to other clubs after being hired in October.

"When Stearns first took this job in the fall, according to people with direct knowledge of internal discussions, he was not interested in trading Alonso," Martino explained. "His predecessor, (former general manager) Billy Eppler, had answered the phone for Alonso-related calls in advance of the July trade deadline, but no talks about the star first baseman gained traction. A deal was never close or close to close. When Stearns arrived, he decided to take the entire idea off the table."

Alonso was linked with the Chicago Cubs before the 2023 World Series and remains on track to reach free agency in the offseason. Buster Olney of ESPN reported before New York fell to 22-32 on what's quickly becoming a second straight lost campaign for the organization.

Heading into Wednesday's MLB action, the Mets trailed the first-place Philadelphia Phillies by 15 games in the National League East standings. New York was responsible for the third-worst record in the NL at that time.

Stearns spoke with reporters before the Mets lost both games of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Los Angeles Dodgers and indicated he still believed the Amazins could turn things around enough to stay in the wild-card hunt through the July 30 trade deadline. However, Deesha Thosar of Fox Sports later pointed out that Stearns is prepared to be "the bad guy who broke hearts" by trading a fan-favorite like Alonso before August.

"There is a perception around the Mets that trading Alonso for a few months would not hurt their efforts to re-sign him as a free agent if they want to do so," Martino added. "That can be tricky. But it’s also a problem for a later date."

That date seemingly gets closer and closer with each loss the floundering Mets suffer.