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<\/p>\nAlonso’s free agent journey brought him back to Queens. He’s proving his worth all over again.<\/p>\n
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CC Sabathia on entering the Hall of Fame and wearing a Yankees cap on his plaque<\/p>\n
CC Sabathia will be enshrined into the Hall of Fame this July and tells USA TODAY Sports why his plaque will feature him wearing a Yankees cap.<\/p>\n
Sports Seriously<\/p>\n
PHOENIX \u2014 So, how do you like me now?<\/p>\n
All-Star first baseman Pete Alonso<\/a> had every reason to spend his winter bitter and frustrated, telling the New York Mets<\/a> to stick it where the sun don\u2019t shine.<\/p>\n Instead, he’s told everyone how elated he is to be back with the Mets<\/a> and after showing the baseball world just what he\u2019s capable of doing these first six weeks, hopes to not hear about his age again until he starts drawing social security checks.<\/p>\n \u201cHonestly, why I would be angry?\u2019\u2019 Alonso told USA TODAY Sports. \u201cFor me, this organization has believed in me since I was a 21-year-old kid. They\u2019re the team that drafted me. They\u2019re the team that called me up. They didn\u2019t trade me. So that means \u2013 I think \u2013\u00a0that they like me.”<\/p>\n It just took a private meeting before spring training in Tampa between Alonso, owner Steve Cohen and David Stearns, president of baseball operations, to express their true feelings about one another. Alonso didn\u2019t get the long-term deal he wanted, but settled on a two-year, $54 million contract that he can walk away from after this season<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a great group, with a great culture and great people,” Alonso said. \u201cI\u2019ve made a lot of great relationships here, with the fans, the coaches, my teammates, the security guards, the clubhouse managers, everything. It\u2019s very special. So that weighed in my decision a lot to come back.<\/p>\n \u201cI get to play with a winning team that had such an amazing postseason last year. You could see all of the promise that we had. We had a lot of good momentum. I didn\u2019t want to leave that. So, for me, the biggest priority is playing for a winning organization.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd there\u2019s no bigger stage than New York.”<\/p>\n While Alonso eventually signed that deal 24 hours after their private meeting, Alonso\u2019s perspective on free agency was different with his hometown of Tampa hit by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, with Alonso and his wife forced to move out of their home with the flood damage.<\/p>\n \u201cThe free agency stuff became secondary,” he said, \u201cbecause there were so many personal things in the offseason. I knew I didn\u2019t have my best season, but I still knew I was going to be playing baseball somewhere. I just had to be patient.”<\/p>\n If Alonso has his druthers, he\u2019ll never have to endure another free agency again after this winter, spending the rest of his career in a Mets uniform.<\/p>\n That feeling should be mutual.<\/p>\n Alonso, after winning the NL Player of the Month in April, entered Saturday hitting .324 and leading the NL with a .443 on-base percentage. He has nine home runs and was tied for the MLB lead with 34 RBIs and 24 extra-base hits. Alonso has an OPS+ of 205, and has already produced a higher WAR (2.2) than he accumulated all of last season (2.1), according to FanGraphs.<\/p>\n He doesn\u2019t look anything like the guy who hit .240 last season with a career-low 34 homers, 88 RBIs and 172 strikeouts, a career-worst 24.7% clip. He is chasing and missing less than at any time in his career, with the best strikeout (17.8%) and walk rates (14.9%) of his career. He\u2019s laying off the inside pitches that he had trouble handling, and punishing pitches in the strike zone. It doesn\u2019t even matter if he falls behind in the count, hitting eight of his nine homers with two strikes.<\/p>\n Alonso\u2019s spectacular start is challenging the narrative that first basemen in their 30s lose their power production.<\/p>\n \u201cStop looking at first basemen 30 or older and believing they\u2019re in their decline,” Scott Boras, Alonso\u2019s agent, tells USA TODAY Sports. \u201cThe truth is that they still can be very valuable, and there are only five or six people [first basemen in their 30s] who can do what Pete is doing.<\/p>\n \u201cThese guys are a rarity hitting in the middle of their lineup.\u00a0 I think the greatest metric in sports is M.V.: Managerial Value. When a manager puts you in the middle of the lineup all season, that tells you the value of the player. He gives you the best chance of winning. And Pete is doing that in New York.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re looking at an elite talent.”<\/p>\n You don\u2019t have to look any further than Los Angeles Dodgers All-Star first baseman Freddie Freeman for proof that turning 30 isn\u2019t a career death sentence. Freeman will turn 36 in September, and is enjoying his best years since turning 30, slashing .311\/.401\/.536 since 2019, averaging 29 homers and 99 RBIs in those full seasons. He has made the All-Star team every year since turning 30, finished in the top 10 in MVP voting all but one season, and won two World Series championships.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m glad people can look at me and see that you can still do it later on,” Freeman said, \u201cbut in my mind, age is just a number. I think if you take care of yourself, it doesn\u2019t matter what your age is. I hope the age [narrative] gets thrown out the window because if you\u2019re a good baseball player, you\u2019re a good baseball player, it doesn\u2019t matter what age you are.”<\/p>\n Certainly, if Alonso continues at this pace, he won\u2019t be sitting around waiting for the phone to ring all winter.<\/p>\n Alonso, who has hit more home runs than any player since his rookie season in 2019 except Yankees great Aaron Judge, has always had power. Now he\u2019s performing like a guy who could be holding an MVP trophy in November, too.<\/p>\n \u201cHe can hit any pitch in any location right now,” Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor said. \u201cIt\u2019s fun to watch. Now, he looks almost like a high average hitter that has a lot of pop, whereas before he was a power hitter. He looks fantastic. His work ethic has been outstanding.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s always been focused, I just feel like he\u2019s hit a point in his life where I think he truly understands his full body and his mechanics, the way he controls the strike zone. He knows he can hit any pitch at any given time, but he\u2019s staying patient. He\u2019s trying to do damage every single at-bat and dominate.”<\/p>\n Alonso, who also picks balls at first base as well as anyone in the game according to Mets manager Carlos Mendoza, shrugs his broad shoulders, as if he\u2019s surprised that everyone else is surprised.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m in my mechanics consistently,\u201d said Alonso, who is hitting to the opposite field 27.5% of the time. “I have good body control right now and if something is not right, I can kind of flush that and adjust to the next pitch to where I feel like I\u2019m back in it. My pitch-to-pitch adjustments have been really, really good. I just feel really, really comfortable.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not perfect, but I just feel like I am myself.”<\/p>\n Boras believes there\u2019s another huge factor to Alonso\u2019s success, and that\u2019s the acquisition of $765 million man Juan Soto. While Alonso may be the one protecting Soto in the batting order, Soto is the one helping Alonso by simply being on base. Soto and Lindor have been on base 132 times already this season, with Alonso\u2019s eyes lighting up every time. Alonso is hitting .343 with a 1.189 OPS with runners on base this season, and .400 with a 1.397 OPS with runners in scoring position.<\/p>\n \u201cWe talked a lot about what the tandem of Soto\/Alonso would do, and frankly, what the Lindor, Soto, Alonso would do at the top of the order,” said Boras, with Soto reaching base 295 times last season while playing with the Yankees. \u201cWe said, ‘My God, this tandem is phenomenal.\u2019 We knew that Juan\u2019s on-base acumen was just starting to take off, and having him on base would optimize Pete. Soto has increased the frequency of having a runner on base, and Pete has taken advantage of it.<\/p>\n \u201cThe combination is nitro.”<\/p>\n The Mets have ridden the best start of Alonso\u2019s career to first place in the NL East, and don\u2019t want to even think about how life would be without him.<\/p>\n \u201cI am so happy he\u2019s here,” Lindor said. \u201cHe\u2019s one of the best power hitters in the game. Hopefully, he stays with us for awhile.”<\/p>\n The Mets were prepared to go on with their life without him over the winter. Now, after seeing him carry the team these first six weeks, the idea of being without him might be terrifying.<\/p>\n \u201cFor Pete, it\u2019s really all about winning and his performance,” Boras said. \u201cRight now, he\u2019s in the right place at the right time.”<\/p>\n Around the basepaths<\/p>\n \u2013 The Boston Red Sox are performing their own version of “Cool Hand Luke” these days: \u201cWhat we’ve got here is failure to communicate.”<\/p>\n While MLB executives believe Boston Red Sox GM Craig Breslow has done a rotten job in his communication with Rafael Devers trying to persuade him to move to first base (after already moving him from third base to DH), Devers doesn’t look great for his unwillingness to do so.<\/p>\n Aaron Judge moved to center field for Juan Soto. Bryce Harper moved to first base. MVPs Alex Rodriguez and Miguel Cabrera switched positions, as did Hall of Famer Chipper Jones and future Hall of Famer Jose Altuve, just to name a few.<\/p>\n The next step could be Devers formally requesting a trade, which likely would not be strongly considered until the offseason.<\/p>\n \u2013 The Chicago White Sox<\/a> finally are starting to get some inquiries on center fielder Luis Robert with the New York Mets recently among the teams checking in and showing interest. The White Sox are eying 23-year-old Mets starting prospect Blake Tidwell as part of a package in return.<\/p>\n \u2013 The Los Angeles Dodgers plan to jump into the free-agent fray for Cubs outfielder Kyle Tucker this winter. They may not be the high bidder, but they\u2019ll surely keep everyone honest just as they did when they were in the Juan Soto sweepstakes.<\/p>\n \u2013 Several contending teams have already begun sending their scouts on the road to scour the market for potential available relief pitchers. It will be a seller\u2019s market with so few high-quality relievers available this year.<\/p>\n \u2013 The St. Louis Cardinals are not receiving any interest in third baseman Nolan Arenado after he rejected trades this winter to the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Angels.<\/p>\n \u2013 You think the Dodgers have plenty of money?<\/p>\n They are the first team to use two planes on all of their road trips \u2013 one that is restricted only to the players \u2013 costing the team a minimum of at least $6 million.<\/p>\n \u2013 The Pittsburgh Pirates, according to information received by the players union and confirmed by several owners, are one of the most profitable teams in all of baseball, stashing a huge chunk of their revenue sharing monies instead of investing in their team year after year.<\/p>\n \u2013 The Dodgers are holding back Shohei Ohtani from pitching until after the All-Star break believing there\u2019s no sense in hurrying him to the mound while he continues to put up MVP numbers at the plate.<\/p>\n \u201cBetween him and Barry Bonds, they\u2019re the two best players I\u2019ve ever seen,\u201d Dodgers manager Dave Roberts says. \u201cI played with Barry. But what Shohei does in the clutch, I\u2019ve never seen anything like what he does in the clutch.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2013 Dodgers rookie R\u014dki Sasaki’s electric fastball still hasn\u2019t shown up since coming from Japan this season.<\/p>\n His 94 to 96-mph fastball was so pedestrian in his last start that he faced 20 batters and didn\u2019t generate a single swing-and-miss and didn\u2019t strike out a single batter. He\u2019s yielding a 4.72 ERA.<\/p>\n \u2013 The Chicago Cubs<\/a> made a \u201cDewey Beats Truman” faux pas when they announced on their iconic stadium marquee that the new Pope is a Cubs fan \u2013\u00a0until his brother confessed that Pope Leo XIV is a White Sox fan. He was in attendance at Game 1 of the 2005 World Series, showing up momentarily on the broadcast.<\/p>\n \u201cFamily always knows best, and it sounds like Pope Leo XIV\u2019s lifelong fandom falls a little closer to 35th and Shields,\u201d the White Sox said in a statement. \u201cSome things are bigger than baseball, and in this case, we\u2019re glad to have a White Sox fan represented at the Vatican.\u201d<\/p>\n It was only fitting then that the Pope\u2019s first full day on the job at the Vatican that the White Sox not only won, but so did the Cardinals.<\/p>\n \u2013 If it wasn\u2019t embarrassing enough that the White Sox set a record with 121 losses last season, that record could be easily toppled this year with the Colorado Rockies (6-33) now off to the worst start in baseball history. Even before Saturday’s 21-0 loss to San Diego, the Rockies had lost seven straight games, while coughing up 34 runs and making eight errors in their three previous games.<\/p>\n Considering the Rockies play in the punishing NL West, is there any doubt that the record could easily go down?<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re playing a bad brand of baseball, all the way around,” Rockies starter Kyle Freeland, a Colorado native, told reporters. \u201cPitching, fielding, hitting. It\u2019s bad.\u201d<\/p>\n The Rockies are currently on pace to go 25-137.<\/p>\n \u2013 With the way official scoring has become at ballparks, Tony Gwynn would be hitting .450 and Ozzie Smith wouldn’t have made a single error. Everything is ruled a hit!<\/p>\n \u2013 Diamondbacks<\/a> bench coach Jeff Bannister, who spent his entire career with the Pittsburgh Pirates until becoming the Rangers manager, is thrilled for Pittsburgh native Don Kelly becoming the Pirates\u2019 new manager after the firing of Derek Shelton.<\/p>\n \u201cI couldn\u2019t be happier for Donnie to see him wearing that uniform,” Bannister told USA TODAY Sports. \u201cI know what this means to him. He\u2019s a Pittsburgh guy, through and through, with a lot of ties there. He\u2019s been a grinder his entire career with that smart baseball intellect, and he has that Jim Leyland lineage too.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know what I think of that that place. Those fans deserve a winning baseball team. They deserve an opportunity to have a team that is going to give them to eventually breaking through and win a championship. That\u2019s such a tremendous sports town.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n Kelly, who grew up in Mt. Lebanon, actually remembers trick-or-treating at Leyland\u2019s house growing up.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s why we went there,” Kelly said at his introductory press conference. \u201cThey gave out the big candy bars. No cigarettes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2013 It\u2019s remarkable that the Dodgers have the best record in baseball considering their relievers have pitched the most innings in baseball (172) entering Saturday with their starters throwing the fewest (171).<\/p>\n They are the first team in history to use 11 starters before the month of May.<\/p>\n The Dodgers will try to shift the workload to the starting rotation with Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Sasaki pitching on five days\u2019 rest instead of six, and Tony Gonsolin becoming their first pitcher to go on four days\u2019 rest.<\/p>\n \u2013 The Diamondbacks\u2019 recent track record of signing front-line free agent starters has been nothing short of horrendous. They blew $85 million on Madison Bumgarner, $52.5 million on Jordan Montgomery, and now their four-year, $80 million contract with Eduardo Rodriguez has looked brutal.<\/p>\n He has made 18 starts since signing the deal in Dec. 2023, and has gone 4-7 with a 6.06 ERA, lasting just 90 \u2154 innings with a 1.58 WHIP.<\/p>\n \u2013 St. Louis Cardinals manager Oli Marmol quietly has done wonders with a team that\u2019s supposed to be nothing more than a rebuild. The Cardinals entered Saturday with a winning record (20-19), just two games out of first place after winning six consecutive games.<\/p>\n \u2013 Yes, those are the Kansas City Royals who have won 16 of 18 games for the first time in 47 years.<\/p>\n \u2013 How atrocious has the Texas Rangers\u2019 offense been this season?<\/p>\n They have already lost nine games allowing three or fewer runs, tied with the lowly White Sox for most losses.<\/p>\n \u2013 Detroit Tigers Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal somehow continues to get better and better. He took a perfect game into the sixth inning and struck out 12 batters in his last start, and he now has an insane 50-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio in his past six starts. It’s the best strikeout-to-walk ratio over six games in franchise history.<\/p>\n \u2013 The Tampa Bay Rays<\/a> absolutely love their new digs at George Steinbrenner Field, believing they have the nicest clubhouse in baseball \u2013 but their home field has proven to be a nightmare, going just 10-16 at home. It\u2019s the most home losses in baseball.<\/p>\n \u2013 Is there a better comeback story than the Detroit Tigers’ Javy Baez, whom fans wanted released in the offseason, only for him to embrace a position switch to center field, hitting.308 with an .812 OPS?<\/p>\n \u2013 The Diamondbacks have managed to score 10 runs in an inning against the Chicago Cubs and still lose. They scored eight unanswered runs against the Dodgers on Friday and still lost after giving up six runs in the ninth inning. And they lost a game in which Eugenio Suarez hit four home runs.<\/p>\n The D-backs are 234-3 in games they\u2019ve scored at least 11 runs in franchise history, with two of those losses occurring this season.<\/p>\n \u2013 Can you imagine how bad the Orioles\u2019 pitching staff would be if they didn\u2019t sign 35-year-old\u00a0Tomoyuki Sugano to a one-year, $13 million contract this winter. The early rookie-of-the-year favorite is 4-2 with a 2.72 ERA and 1.01 WHIP in 46 \u2153 innings.<\/p>\n \u2013 Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy, who has heard plenty of fan abuse with his early-season struggles, echoed the thoughts of many players today who are being trashed on social media.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople feel like they can say whatever they want to say, and they don\u2019t realize who it\u2019s hurting the most,\u2019\u2019 Muncy told the Athletic<\/a>. \u201cI signed up for this life. I understand that if you play bad, they\u2019re going to have opinions. And it\u2019s warranted. But when you\u2019re hearing from your family about certain things that are being said to them, that\u2019s when it gets tough for me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2013 The Detroit Tigers, who have not won the World Series since 1984, may be the best team in the American League. They were 34-19 in August and September (.641 winning percentage) last year, and are even better the start of this season with their 26-13 record (.667).<\/p>\n \u2013 Scouts have raved about the improvement of Diamondbacks All-Star right fielder Corbin Carroll\u2019s arm. It used to be the biggest flaw in his game. Now, it has become a strength, perhaps making him the game\u2019s best all-around young player.<\/p>\n \u2013 Remember a year ago when the Brewers had 39 comeback victories while running away with the NL Central?<\/p>\n This season they\u2019re 0-13 when their opponent scores first.<\/p>\n \u2013 The NL West race is shaping up as a doozy with three teams on pace to win at least 100 games this season, with the Dodgers, Padres and Giants separated by only two games, and the D-backs lurking.<\/p>\n \u201cI think we\u2019re the best division in baseball,\u201d Dodgers manager Dave Roberts says. \u201cI don\u2019t think anyone is gonna run away with it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2013 Remember when the San Diego Padres insisted that the Yankees must take center fielder Trent Grisham in the Juan Soto trade to save $5 million?<\/p>\n Well, look who has 10 homers (one more than last year), hitting .280 with a .987 OPS.<\/p>\n \u2013 Feat of the Week: LaTroy Hawkins, 52, who spent 20 years in the big leagues after being drafted by the Minnesota Twins out of high school in Gary, Ind., graduating magna cum laude with a\u00a0bachelor’s degree in sociology from Southern New Hampshire University. He promised his grandmother he\u2019d complete his education, and last week walked across the stage to proudly accept his diploma.<\/p>\n Follow Nightengale on X: @Bnightengale<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n