MLB insider predicts impact of Juan Soto, Pete Alonso one-two punch for Mets

The New York Mets have finally ended the free agency saga of Pete Alonso after both parties reportedly agreed to a two-year, $54-million deal on Wednesday. The Mets now possess a formidable one-two punch in their batting lineup after they signed Juan Soto on a 15-year, $765-million contract earlier in this offseason.

MLB insider Mark Feinsand feels the New York Yankees packed a stronger blow when they had Aaron Judge batting behind Juan Soto in their lineup last year. Yet he believes the New York Mets are not going to be that far off with Pete Alonso. He pointed out that only Judge has smashed more home runs in the MLB than Alonso since the latter made his debut in 2019.

Mark Feinsand is a senior writer for MLB.com. He offered his reactions to the Mets successfully bringing Pete Alonso back to the team for the upcoming campaign on MLB Network. [2:30 to end]

"The Mets were a formidable team last year. Obviously they got to the NLCS without Juan Soto there. Now you bring back Alonso on top of adding Juan Soto. I don't know if he provides the exact same type of protection," Feinsand said. "Not quite the one-two punch that Soto and Aaron Judge were, but it's pretty good.

"That's not a lineup that anybody is going to be excited to face," he added. "Pete Alonso, since he broke into the league, has hit more home runs than anybody in baseball other than Judge. So, if you pair him with Soto, that's a pretty good one-two punch of power right there at the top of that lineup."

Alonso has got 226 home runs over his six-year major league career, while Judge hit six more than him during that period.

Don't bring back Pete Alonso, then that's another hole in the lineup they'd have to address: Mark Feinsand

Pete Alonso is two-time winner of the MLB Home Run Derby (Image Source: IMAGN)

Last season, the New York Mets fell just short of claiming the National League pennant after losing to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Championship Series. Mark Feinsand thinks the Dodgers are still a stronger team, but the Mets have improved considerably from an offensive standpoint after securing Pete Alonso to their lineup alongside Juan Soto.

"You'd have to think they've had a good offseason," Feinsand said. "Obviously they added Juan Soto, and they were able to bring back Alonso. They brought in Soto, who's a better player than Alonso, but if you don't bring back Alonso, then that's another hole in the lineup they'd have to address, and now they've done that.

"I don't know if they're there with the Dodgers. The Dodgers have the most talented roster, from top to bottom," he added. "They're going to be hard to beat, but we see this every year that come playoff time. You just have to get to October, and anything can happen in a short series."

Alonso got 34 home runs last year, his lowest tally over a full 162-game season. On the othe hand Soto smashed a carrer-high 41 dingers in 2024.