Steve Cohen gave Pete Alonso the Juan Soto treatment to convince him to stay with the Mets

New York Mets owner Steve Cohen has decided that he is going to do whatever it takes to build a World Series contending team regardless of the price. Cohen was able to convince the most sought-after free agent this offseason (Juan Soto) to make the move from the Bronx to Queens. Of course, this took offering the richest contract in sports history ($765 million) but was accomplished nonetheless.

Cohen traveled to both California and Florida to have multiple meetings with Soto and his agent Scott Boras to make a deal fall into place. Cohen has continued to work with Boras this offseason as he was able to get first baseman Pete Alonso to re-sign with the Mets on a two-year deal.

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What it took to re-sign Pete Alonso

Looking at the contract details of Pete Alonso's two-year deal, it is easy to see that this is a very player-friendly deal. Alonso is now set to be the highest-paid first baseman in 2025 and has a player option following the season. The contract's total worth is $54 million.

At the beginning of the offseason, Alonso was seeking a long-term deal similar to the contracts Freddie Freeman and Matt Olson had recently signed. If this was Alonso's expectation, how did Cohen get Alonso to agree to two years?

Mike Puma, the Mets beat reporter for the New York Post, shared on X that Cohen flew to Tampa to meet with Alonso and Boras at Stovall House. David Stearns, the president of baseball operations for the Mets was also present at this meeting.

According to Puma's report, it sounds like Alonso said his piece and shared his frustration about not being offered a bigger deal earlier this offseason. With the length and salary of Soto's contract and all of the other moves the Mets have made this offseason, it would be difficult to commit to another long-term contract, even for Pete Alonso.

Obviously all parties involved were able to come to an agreement but knowing that Alonso has the chance to opt out of his contract following the 2025 season could indicate Alonso himself led contract negotiations. Cohen, Stearns and the entire Mets front office seems to have tailored to Alonso's wishes to get him to re-sign with the only club he has known. The Mets better enjoy having Alonso at first base this upcoming season because it is likely they will be in this scenario again a year from now.