It took about an hour after the Mets season ended in utter shame for Pete Alonso to tell the New York media he planned to opt out of the final year of his contract. Alonso's decision should come as no surprise to any reporter used to covering free agency, as he should be able to make more money on a multiyear deal on the open market, but the timing was a bit suspect. Alonso reiterated that he'd love to remain a Met, but will see what the future brings.
"Playing for this organization, this city - they've continued to believe in me. I love playing here. There's some great guys in this clubhouse, some great people on the staff. Every single day, it's been a pleasure coming to work and putting on the orange and blue," Alonso said. "I've really appreciated it and have been nothing but full of gratitude every single day. Nothing is guaranteed, but we'll see what happens - I've loved being a Met. Hopefully, they've appreciated me the same."
That last line hits hardest, as Alonso essentially put the ball in the Mets court. Alonso has the most home runs in franchise history. He is already an established Mets icon, even if he's played his last game in Queens. But, to leave this way would be a tough pill for the fanbase to swallow. Alonso was technically under contract for another year. He is not blameless in this scenario, and David Stearns knows that.
"I think we're going to have to be open-minded on our position player grouping so that we can improve our run prevention," Stearns said. "Does that mean there are robust changes, I don't know...a day after the season ends I'm certainly not going to commit to what things look like in spring training."
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Do the New York Mets have to sign Pete Alonso?
To put it short: no. The Mets don't have to sign their 30-year-old designated hitter to a multiyear, lucrative contract if they don't want to. Doing so would be banking on Alonso's production well into his 30's and making a deal with the baseball agent version of the devil in Scott Boras.
The alternative to signing Alonso has to be a big swing. Alonso isn't just a Mets icon – the Polar Bear had a damn good season in 2025. Alonso had a 144 OPS+ and 37 home runs on the season. He is opting out of his player option because he knows he can make more money as a result.
The Mets best-case backup plan if Alonso were to walk would be signing Philadelphia Phillies DH Kyle Schwarber to a similar deal. Schwarber will enter free agency after the Phillies postseason run, as well, and why he's beloved in Philadelphia there is no guarantee he returns for anything less than a king's ransom.
But just how valuable is Schwarber's bat? That's an important question, as he doesn't play the field. Schwarber had a better offensive season than Alonso, with a 150 OPS+ and a whopping 56 home runs. Schwarber is also a postseason hero, and has proven he can perform at a high level when the lights are brightest.
Would Kyle Schwarber really betray the Phillies and sign with the Mets?
I mean, why not? While it's honorable for a player to play for one team his entire career, it rarely happens these days. Schwarber has played for four of them – the Cubs, Nationals, Red Sox and Phillies. This isn't to suggest Schwarber isn't loyal to those organizations, but if the Mets offer him the most money and the Phillies don't match, then Dave Dombrowski would have no one to blame but himself (and perhaps owner John Middleton).
What makes this theoretical free-agency chase even more interesting is that Steve Cohen is the richest owner in baseball. If he were dead-set on stealing Schwarber from the Mets biggest NL East competition, then he could give his agent a blank check.
The downside of such a move would be the repercussions. If the Mets sign Schwarber, there's a good chance the Phillies would try to replace him with...Alonso.
MLB free agency starts after the World Series, so there will be almost another month full of speculation a lot like this. Schwarber and Alonso should be at the center of all of it.