That’s the big question on the day of the trade deadline for the Chicago Cubs, as the New York Mets have reportedly made first baseman Pete Alonso available.
Alonso, 28, is under team control through the 2024 season, which will be his final year of arbitration. As the Mets continue their sell-off, the right-handed slugger has also been on the trade block this past week.
Via The Athletic.
In saying the Mets weren’t “punting” 2024, Eppler did temper expectations for the season on Sunday. With that in mind, the Mets have been open-minded about trade talks involving other players whose contracts are up at the end of 2024. That includes Pete Alonso, who is set to become a free agent after next season.
An industry source said Alonso has been available on the trade market over the last week. While declining to discuss specific players on Sunday, Eppler emphasized that the Mets’ “price points are high.”
The Mets have already made a handful of deals in July, including the big trade of Max Scherzer to the Texas Rangers. New York also seems motivated to move Justin Verlander by the end of Tuesday’s deadline.
As for Alonso, the Cubs had to have called already, right? This entire year the Cubs have lacked another power threat in the lineup and at this point it doesn’t seem like they believe in Matt Mervis. There is an obvious need at first base, where Eric Hosmer was DFA’s after a month and Trey Mancini has been tremendously underwhelming. Luckily, the Cubs have Cody Bellinger, who has taken some of the playing time in center, but his biggest value remains as the starting center fielder.
Alonso would fill an obvious need for the Cubs at first base and in the power department.
Alonso is having a down season with the Mets, but a down season for him still means putting up a 125 wRC+ with 30 home runs in 97 games. The right-handed hitting first baseman has a slash line of .218/.314/.506. Yeah, he strikes out, but we’re not talking about Patrick Wisdom here. Since the beginning of 2021, Alonso’s strikeout rate has been at 19.9, 18.7 and 20.7 so far this year.
He is one of the elite power hitters in all of baseball, crushing at least 37 home runs in each full season since coming up to the majors in 2019. Alonso is on pace to hit close to 50 home runs in 2023.
So yeah, the cost would be high for the Cubs and every other team giving the Mets a call to ask about Alonso.
The Cubs traded a pair mid-tier prospects to the Washington Nationals on Monday for switch-hitting corner infielder Jeimer Candelario, who at the time was the best rental bat on the trade market. After an eight-game winning streak, the Cubs got right back in the playoff mix and the front office rewarded the team with Candelario. That is a big vote of confidence. But how much more are the Cubs willing to push?
That being said, the Cubs are coming from a position of strength, as their farm system is viewed among the best in the league and despite Monday’s trade, their depth barely took a dent. The Cubs do have the ability to trade for Alonso, but like all these moves, it’s a matter of how much they’re willing to trade.
The trade deadline is at 5 p.m. CST.
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