Mets are trying to close Pandora’s Box with Pete Alonso trade rumors

One of the strangest sagas in all of baseball over the last six months or so has been Pete Alonso and his future with the New York Mets. Alonso has gone on record saying how much he loves being a Met. The Mets have repeatedly said how much they love Pete and want him to be a Met for life. Yet, nothing has happened, and nothing seems to be close to happening.

Alonso understandably is searching for a long-term deal that will get him through most, if not the entirety of the remainder of his playing career. The Mets, understandably, are reluctant to give him that. Giving first basemen on the wrong side of 30 massive deals like that almost never end well, and the Mets know that.

With no extension talks behind had, teams have been calling the Mets inquiring about his availability since the trade deadline. While Stearns is answering the phone, he's said publicly that Alonso will be the Mets first baseman on Opening Day and has said repeatedly he wants the slugger to be in Queens long-term, with the latest coming on the Foul Territory podcast.

David Stearns reiterates desire to make Pete Alonso a Met for life

A.J. Pierzynski asked point blank on the podcast when the presser will be that announces Pete Alonso as a Met for life. Stearns with a smile on his face said in response "Let's set it up for tomorrow", once again reiterating his desire to put pen to paper and commit to Alonso for a very long time.

As encouraging as that might've been for Mets fans to hear, Stearns immediately followed that up by saying the plan is to let the year play out and that it benefits everyone if Pete has a good year. While that's true, it's certainly eye-popping that the Mets aren't considering extending him now.

While the Mets are unlikely to move on from Alonso before the season, can that change if New York is out of it by the trade deadline? We know they're open to fielding calls, perhaps with that being their last chance to trade him they'll actually pull the trigger.

Stearns saying publicly that he's interested in making Alonso a career Met should calm the nerves just a tad for the fans. While this likely means that Alonso will enter free agency, that's no guarantee that he won't re-sign. Just last offseason the Mets re-signed Brandon Nimmo and Edwin Diaz on massive deals to remain with the organization. We know Steve Cohen is willing to pay, so as long as he's within a range they deem to be acceptable, the Mets will want to bring him back.

It's not fully the answer Mets fans wanted to hear when Pierzynski asked Stearns the question, but Stearns continuing to say publicly that he wants Alonso long-term has to mean something, right?