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    • 5 teams that could recruit Polar Bear
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    5 teams that could recruit Polar Bear

    Umito Posted on

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    Can an opposite-field ball hit 367 feet be worth hundreds of millions of dollars in sentiment?

    Maybe it wouldn’t mean anything, and maybe it didn’t change his destiny as a New York Met. However, when Pete Alonso’s three-run homer catapulted the Mets from wild-card underdog status to Game 6 of the National League Championship Series, it became all the more difficult to separate reality from the narrative.

    Alonso’s ninth-inning one-out shot against Milwaukee Brewers closer Devin Williams in the deciding third game of their NL wild-card series helped ensure that owner Steve Cohen’s club was not just a nice second half story that ended quickly in October.

    No, in upsetting the division champion Philadelphia Phillies in the subsequent NL Division Series and fight the Dodgers for one more game than the Yankees ultimately made in the World Series, the Mets exceeded their expectations.

    And embarked on the kind of journey that galvanized the fan base, solidified Alonso’s position among them and likely boosted the club’s franchise value.

    Is all this enough to guarantee a massive commitment to polar bear conservation?

    A look at the top five potential landing spots for the free agent turning 30th birthday next month:

    New York Mets

    On the one hand, you look at Alonso’s age and increasing strikeout rate and think the nine-figure contract needed to retain him might not be worth it.

    On the other hand, there’s already so much good in the bank: 226 career home runs, just 26 shy of tying Darryl Strawberry at the top of the franchise leaderboard. Four All-Star appearances and two Home Run Derby championships. A career adjusted OPS of 134 and three seasons with at least 40 home runs.

    That’s before we even get to the vibe, as Alonso is a vehement and vocal supporter of the club, presented the playoff pumpkin during last month’s Merry October Run, and has ingrained himself in the community fans since his rookie season in 2019.

    That year, the Mets did well with him and started Alonso on Opening Day; he rewarded them with 53 home runs and a 147 adjusted OPS. As a result, he is now on the free agent market and doesn’t have to wait another year.

    Can this apparently cordial relationship continue? Or will Cohen be put to work by the pursuit of Juan Soto and criticized by the club’s new president, David Stearns, who may view Alonso’s possible declining years more pragmatically?

    This will make for a gripping winter drama.

    New York Yankees

    And therein lies the twist of the knife: Alonso leaving Queens for the Bronx, perhaps pushing the Yankees to an elusive World Series championship, eventually obscuring his time as a Met and (for example!) possibly -being entering Cooperstown with another NY nested on his hood.

    There’s a gaping hole at first base for the Yankees, one they’d rather not let DJ LeMahieu disappear, to say the least. Sure, mid-range models are available on the market, but after one of the most glitzy Yankees teams in recent memory filled the stadium and reached the World Series, will fans rally around a acquisition of Christian Walker or Carlos Santana?

    Oddly enough, the Yankees and Mets are believed to be positioned in front of the same four gates, in a modified game of Let’s Make A Deal: Sign Alonso. Sign Soto. Sign Soto and Alonso. Do not sign either one.

    It certainly seems like the Yankees can’t afford that end scenario, either in terms of production or panache. At the same time, losing Soto and adding Alonso would make the middle of the lineup far too right-handed, with sluggers Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton already in the mix.

    Go big or go home? That’s a question that Managing Partner Hal Steinbrenner will have to think about.

    Seattle Mariners

    What better way to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Richie Sexson era in Seattle than with a big, powerful right-handed hitter entering his age-30 season?

    OK, so maybe that’s not the best way to sell this.

    Still, the similarities are quite striking: A team heavy on pitching and weak on hitting aims to balance things out by using purchasing power in the free agent market. And Sexson hit 39 home runs in 2004, the first year of his four-year, $50 million contract.

    Seattle, however, only improved from 63 to 69 wins in 2005, Sexson struck out a major league record 167 times and in the fourth year of his contract he was waived to the Yankees.

    Now, these Mariners: Although they invested well in pitching, their pop-gun offense once again kept them from winning a division title. Club president Jerry Dipoto will be harassed by his Comments “54%” until the Mariners, you know, ended up winning over 54% of their games.

    Many right-handed hitters have been upset at Safeco Field/T-Mobile Park. Still, the Polar Bear has the kind of pop that no yard can really contain. And a club that won 85 games despite finishing in the bottom third in runs scored and OPS can certainly use a hitter with pulse.

    Cincinnati Reds

    You asked for “good fits”, but probably not, right?

    It’s been more than a decade since the Castellini family gave franchise icon Joey Votto a nine-figure extension and followed that up with a nearly $100 million deal for pitcher Homer Bailey. Since then, you’d think the Reds were as destitute as a Kroger aisle before a hurricane.

    So no, we don’t expect Cincinnati to make a splash in this free agent pool. Yet the conditions are there.

    New manager Terry Francona didn’t come out of retirement to take over Cleveland South and oversee a methodical build. The club has virtually no money on its books this year – only pitcher Hunter Greene signed a modest contract after 2026.

    And a core of young players will remain in check over the next few years. There’s no reason why $30 million a year for Alonso’s power bat couldn’t be put into a foundation that includes infielders Matt McLain, Noelvi Marte and the transcendent Elly De La Cruz , the latter not even being eligible for arbitration before 2027.

    Just imagine Alonso’s pop at the Great American Ball Park, which remains the friendliest venue for hit home runs. You’d like to think the Reds did it.

    Tampa Bay Rays

    We’d rather the Rays cross the $50 million mark in free agent auctions before honoring them with inclusion on a list like this. But maybe the conditions are aligning a little.

    As frugal as the Rays were — their biggest free agent contract was a three-year, $40 million deal for Zach Eflin, and they quickly traded him in year two — they stuck their noses in auction of Freddie Freeman when Atlanta released him three winters ago. . They reportedly contacted Juan Soto this month to talk.

    And the green flags continue to line up for a new stadium set to open in St. Petersburg in 2028. Who better to get the locals excited than a local star?

    OK, so Alonso hails from just over the Sunshine Skyway in Tampa. He won’t get his favorite wish that a new Rays stadium go up near Reinforcement works on this side of the Bay. Still, things could just as easily blow over in Pinellas County if the seal is broken on the new ballpark by Plant High School pride.

    So maybe owner Stuart Sternberg will still be as cheap and “efficient” as his front office allows. But it’s intriguing to consider bringing a real, living St. Pete home.

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    Umito
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