"It was on par with Matt Olson, Freddie Freeman" - MLB analyst blasts Pete Alonso's past rejection of $158,000,000 deal

When the off-season began, Pete Alonso was considered to be one of the most coveted free agents of this off-season, but the market for the All-Star first baseman has not materialized as expected. Moreover, Alonso had rejected a seven-year, $158 million contract extension from the New York Mets in 2023, but he has not received any offers for a long-term deal from any team so far.

MLB analyst Sal Licata blasted Pete Alonso for turning down the extension that the New York Mets had offered him two years ago, since they valued it in the same category with Freddie Freeman and Matt Olson, two of the premier first basemen in the MLB. Licata feels the Mets are not entitled to make Alonso a larger offer since there has been a regression in his abilities over the past couple of seasons.

Sal Licata is a sports radio host for WFAN. Licata ranted about the logjam in negotiations between Pete Alonso and the Mets on the network this Friday. [0 - 11:43]

"They offered him at the time, two years ago, a more than fair market value deal for seven [years], $160 [million], on par with Matt Olson and Freddie Freeman," he said. "He turned it down and stunk essentially for two years. [He averaged] .217 [in 2023], and then last year, he didn't have the power numbers, even though the average went up a little bit.

"That's not what you're going to pay hundreds of millions of dollars for," he added. "So, a lot of things happened here that Pete is at fault for. Not the Mets."

Alonso batted .229/.324/.480 in his last two seasons for the Mets with 80 home runs and 206 RBIs.

Nobody is doing that for Pete Alonso: Sal Licata

Alonso won the NL Rookie of the Year in 2019 (Image Source: Imagn)

Sal Licata feels Pete Alonso may have been misled by his representatives regarding his market value, especially after the New York Mets dished out a record-breaking 15-year, $765 million deal for Juan Soto.

"They really, really, really wanted Juan Soto, so they went to the extent and the level that they did to make sure that they got him. Just like other teams, including the Yankees, did. Nobody is doing that for Pete Alonso," he said. "Doesn't mean Pete sucks; doesn't mean Pete's worthless. It means his market isn't what he thought it was going to be."

Meanwhile, his agent, Scott Boras, has placed the first baseman for a shorter deal with a high average annual value, with the Toronto Blue Jays reportedly showing interest in signing the free agent.