2 contenders for Pete Alonso confirmed by MLB insider

The upcoming free agency class is going to be dominated by a few of the top names. The big name in the class is Juan Soto, who's looking to become one of the highest paid players in the history of baseball, deservedly so. Soto could bring in a contract worth nearly $600 million, if not reaching that total.

Soto is rumored to be connected to the New York Mets and Yankees the most. With the Mets pursuing Soto so heavily, they're running the risk of watching their own slugging free agent, Pete Alonso walk in the offseason.

One prominent MLB insider has connected Alonso to a few different big time franchises already.

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Orioles, Padres linked to slugger Pete Alonso in free agency, according to MLB insider

MLB insider Jon Heyman put together all the information he has on the top free agents in the upcoming free agent class. Heyman discussed Pete Alonso, connecting him to multiple different teams.

"In an alleged 'off' year, he has 33 homers and his 127 OPS plus is actually higher than 2023 following recent mechanical adjustments. The Mets reasonably tried $158M last year, but he can probably beat that. One rival predicts $185M. If not the Mets, the Astros, Rangers, Mariners, Orioles, Padres and Cubs all work (and possibly the Yankees if Soto walks)," Heyman wrote.

While all the teams on the list make sense and will likely be in the sweepstakes to acquire Alonso, it's the Baltimore Orioles and the San Diego Padres that really stand out. The Padres have shown year in and year out that they're willing to spend however much money they need to put the best team on the field. This wouldn't change with Alonso available in free agency.

The Orioles would make sense for Alonso as well, mostly because Baltimore has a ton of young talent that doesn't take up too much money. They will need to re-sign these players at some point, but for now, they can get away with paying them relatively cheap.

If the Mets happen to whiff on Soto and whiff early, then they're probably the favorites to land Alonso. But if Alonso is looking to sign early, before Soto finds a home, then the Padres and Orioles are two contenders that could swipe Alonso right out from under their nose.