MLB Rumors: Pete Alonso and the Baltimore Orioles have agreed to terms on a 5 year, $155 million deal, per multiple reports.
This is a very surprising move on a few levels.
First of all, it seemed unlikely
that the New York Mets would let Alonso leave. A homegrown hero, Alonso explored the free agent market last offseason before agreeing to a short-term pillow deal. Back on the market this year, much like Kyle Schwarber, it seemed like he would end up staying where he was and getting paid. That is especially so, given Mets owner Steve Cohen’s willingness to spend money. Another team paying Alonso enough more than the Mets that he’d leave seemed unlikely.
Second of all, the team in question is the Baltimore Orioles, who have been rather penurious in the free agent market for a number of years, and especially since Mike Elias took the helm. The club had a disastrous 2025 season, which may well have impacted their thinking, but they aren’t a team that has been aggressive for the big money guys.
Third of all, while the Orioles weren’t a real good hitting team in 2025, their bigger issues was the pitching staff being kind of terrible. That problem is exacerbated by the fact that the club’s young talent has been primarily on the position-player side of things — and of course, the Orioles just traded Grayson Rodriguez for Taylor Ward.
Fourth of all, this is more money than Alonso was generally expected to get. We did an Alonso poll last month, and the consensus of the prognosticators was four years at $28-30 million per year. Alonso is getting five years at $31 million per year (though let’s wait and see about any deferrals that nerf the overall value).
Fifth of all, Alonso is a 31 year old righthanded hitting bat-only guy, someone who has graded out poorly at first base defensively for most of his career, and who is expected to transition to DH in the relatively near future. Those types of players usually don’t get these sorts of contracts (Kyle Schwarber just did, of course, and he’s older than Alonso, and already a DH, but also a lefty hitter).
Pete Alonso is a really good hitter who will make the Orioles’ lineup stronger in the immediate future. And it isn’t like the O’s are laden with high-dollar contracts, so it isn’t as if potentially overpaying for Alonso is going to tie their hands or tip them into the upper luxury tax tiers (or the luxury tax at all).
But this is a lot of money for a long time for a player with the type of profile that can go south quickly.
