Mets’ Steve Cohen on Pete Alonso negotiations: ‘I don’t like what’s been presented to us’

The hot topic throughout the Mets’ Amazin’ Day event on Saturday was Pete Alonso‘s free agency.

The longtime Mets first baseman is still testing the free agent market and while the baseball world waits for a resolution, players, coaches and front office members fielded questions on Alonso throughout the day. But the most notable answer came from Mets owner Steve Cohen.

Cohen was on the Mets Leadership Fireside Chat panel with Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns and manager Carlos Mendoza where they fielded various questions about the 2024 season, their offseason moves and the players that are currently on the team. The panel was asked where things stood with Alonso.

“We all love Pete. And we’ve said that many times. I think as we’ve gone through this process, we’ve continued to express that,” Stearns said. “We also understand that this is a business and Pete as a free agent deserves the right and has the right, earned the privilege really, to see what’s out there.

“We also feel really good about the young players who are coming through our system, who have the ability to play at the major league level. We saw that last year, and that’s not always the popular opinion, but we saw that last year. And we’re going to need to see that again.”

Boos, “Pete Alonso” and “We Want Pete” chants rang out after Stearns’ answer. Cohen asked the crowd to settle down before giving his side of the offseason negotiations.

“We’ve made a significant offer to Pete. And what David said is correct, he’s entitled to go out and explore his market, and that’s what he’s doing,” Cohen said. “Personally, this has been an exhausting conversation and negotiation. Soto was tough, this is worse. A lot of it is, we made a significant offer. I don’t like the structures [of the offer] that are being presented back to us. I think it is highly asymmetric against us. I feel strongly about it.

“I will never say, no. There is always a possibility. The reality is, we’re moving forward. We continue to bring in players. As we continue to bring in players, the reality is, it becomes harder to fit Pete into a very expensive group of players we already have. That’s where we are.

“I’m being brutally honest. I don’t like the negotiations. I don’t like what’s been presented to us. Listen, maybe that changes. I’ll always stay flexible. If it stays this way, we may have to go forward with the existing players we have.”

It was reported that Alonso’s camp offered the Mets an exclusive offer for three years with opt-outs. The Mets reportedly offered a three-year deal worth between $68-$70 million, which Alonso declined.

SNY’s Andy Martino reported on this week’s Baseball Night in New York that the reported $68-$70 million offer is in “present-day money.” A disagreement on deferrals was had, but the final amount that Alonso turned down was more than $70 million when taking the deferred money into account.

Martino reported at the time of the Jesse Winker signing that the Mets were going to operate as if Alonso would sign elsewhere and begin to add pieces to the roster as Cohen mentioned. Aside from Winker, the Mets have added RHP A.J. Minter to fortify the bullpen as well as extend minor league contracts to a number of arms.

As a backup plan for Alonso, the Mets have told young infielders Mark Vientos and Brett Baty to work out at various infield positions including first base, just in case.

Currently, talks between Alonso and the Blue Jays are “advancing” but no deal is done. That does leave the door open for a Mets reunion but with the team set to meet for spring training workouts in less than a month, time is ticking.