The New York Mets continue to do the improbable.
The underdog team has extended their postseason run by defeating the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League Division Series and now await either the Los Angeles Dodgers or San Diego Padres for a pennant series.
The run has been marked by heroic moments up and down the roster, with franchise sluggers Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso both coming up clutch at the plate so far. And with Alonso set to hit free agency at the end of the season, Lindor shared his thoughts on how this run might shape his teammates’ next contract.
"One of my favorite teammates, Mike Napoli, said: 'You want to be famous? Do it in the postseason,'" Lindor told Deesha Thosar of Fox Sports. "This is the time to do it. You want to get paid? Do it in the postseason. A lot of players have made crazy money because they perform in the postseason. I hope (Alonso) continues to do that… I hope he goes crazy and makes as much as he wants to make."
In a regular season that saw the Mets barely squeeze into the National League’s final postseason spot, Alonso slashed .240/.329/.459 — a slugging percentage well below his .514 career average. At age 29, playing a relatively invaluable position at first base, there have been questions about what kind of long-term deal Alonso might secure this winter.
But his bat has come alive in the playoffs, with three home runs and six RBI in seven games so far. If Alonso can continue his heroics in the postseason, Mets owner Steve Cohen might be left with little choice but to sign him to the franchise for life.
“They’ve won all three playoff games that he’s homered in thus far, and those pivotal swings could play a big role in his upcoming contract negotiations, too,” Thosar added. “Now that he’s also producing in the playoffs, what’s stopping Cohen from forking over a contract that will satisfy Alonso, and perhaps make the soon-to-be 30-year-old a homegrown Met for life?”
According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, Alonso declined a seven-year, $158 million offer from the Mets in 2023. As he continues to show what his bat can mean to a playoff team during this improbable run, he could be in line for an even bigger payday to stay in New York moving forward.
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