The Mets appear to have won their game of chicken with Pete Alonso and Scott Boras

The New York Mets won the offseason with a single move, securing top free agent Juan Soto with a historic 15-year, $765 million contract.

Steve Cohen is baseball’s most ambitious (and liquid) owner. He’s not short on cash, and more importantly, he doesn’t view the Mets as a business investment. He considers the Mets as fan investment and will go to great lengths to deliver a World Series to Queens as a result.

However, even the richest owners have their limits. The Mets spent the rest of the offseason putting together a patchwork rotation of discount contracts to grab pennies and preserve flexibility to build around Soto.

One result of New York’s subsequent lack of aggressiveness was the ongoing uncertainty surrounding Pete Alonso. Every Mets fan wants Alonso back in the building, but the All-Star first baseman began the offseason looking for a lucrative nine-figure salary. The Mets had no plans to spend more than $150 million on Alonso after mortgaging the future with Soto’s contract, which carries extreme risk a decade later.

New York’s patience with Alonso was a calculated gamble. He could have signed a mega-contract in December, but there were few offers and Alonso’s agent Scott Boras is known to go for top dollar or maximum flexibility. That patience is paying off as the market shrinks and Alonso quickly runs out of better options.

For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work The Baseball Insiders Podcastsubscribe The moonshotour weekly MLB newsletter and join the Discord to get the inside scoop leading up to the MLB offseason.

Alonso’s camp has put a three-year contract offer on the table for New York with built-in opt-outs. According to former GM Jim Duquette, this deal is available to the Mets and only the Mets.

There’s really only one way to read this. Alonso is generally willing to accept a hometown discount from New York. If not in terms of annual salary, then in terms of contract length, as long as he has the flexibility to test the market again next winter.

Alonso has seen the free agent market pass him by. There are still “interested applicants,” but how many actually think they are realistic? The Mariners need hitters but never spend money. There were rumors about the Nationals a long time ago, but that trail has disappeared. The Giants have already spent a lot of money on Willy Adames and Justin Verlander. The Blue Jays don’t need a first baseman. Neither do the Red Sox, the Yankees or the Astros.

It feels like Mets or bust for Alonso, so it’s only a matter of time before the reunion is official. We could always get a last-second shocker, but the Mets are still loaded with financial ammunition and have a need at first base. With Alonso batting cleanup, opposing pitchers have fewer options to get around the one-two punch of Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto at the top of the lineup.

There is no better setup for Alonso. The Mets are an established winner and need one last explosive hitter. For all his faults, Alonso is a nuclear hitter with one of the most beautiful, HR-threatening swings in baseball. The Mets know this better than anyone. It’s fair to argue about the value of a 30-something first baseman with limited defensive skills, but on a short-term contract, Alonso’s bat is worth its weight in gold.

So expect these wedding vows to be reaffirmed sooner or later. Alonso is a Met for Life – he simply is – and all signs point to this coming to fruition.