Pete Alonso has rejected a $70 million contract extension from the New York Mets, who are now considering Mark Vientos as his potential replacement for the first baseman position. Mets coach Mike Sarbaugh expressed confidence in Vientos’ abilities based on his performance last season.
While Pete Alonso has been struggling with finding the perfect next home for himself, his former team the New York Mets has figured out which player to promote to the first baseman’s spot. Mets’ coach Mike Sarbaugh recently hinted at the potential “better” replacement for Alonso following his rejection of a $70 Million contract extension offer from the team. Here’s everything Sabaugh revealed about Alonso’s replacement.
Who will replace Pete Alonso for first baseman in the 2025 MLB season?
The offseason is near its conclusion but Pete Alonso hasn’t been anywhere close to getting signed for the 2025 MLB season. While on one hand Alonso faces battles with signing, on the other hand, his former team, New York Mets, have already figured out an athlete for the first baseman’s position.
New York Mets coach Mike Sarbaugh was recently interviewed by the New York Post. During the interview, Sarbaugh teased at the possibility of Mark Vientos, the third baseman, to get a promotion and be replaced in Pete Alonso’s position ahead of the 2025 MLB season. Talking about the same, Sarbaugh said:
“I haven’t seen him a lot at first base, but Mark puts a lot of work in so I think wherever he is and wherever he ends up, I think he will be just fine. Last season helped build confidence with him that, ‘Hey, I am able to do this’ — that was the first time he had ever played third on an everyday basis.”
Mark Vientos came into the spotlight of the fans last season when he slugged 27 home runs with a .266/.322/.516/.837 slash line in an impressive total of 111 games. Despite his struggles with the defensive metrics, Vientos ended up with a bWAR rating of 3.2, hinting that he definitely has the potential to be playing first baseman.
Since there’s nothing finalized yet, there’s still a chance that Pete Alonso might get back to the Mets despite rejecting their previous offer. MLB Analyst Brin O’Grady recently appeared on the podcast episode of “Justin Ayers Baseball”, during which he opened up about the ideology behind why Alonso’s offer rejections make sense.
“I’m pretty sure he’s up there in the picking stats. He’s good at digging balls out. I believe I could be wrong but I’m pretty sure he rates pretty solid as a first baseman. He’s still a pretty good athlete, but I do think the modern-day first baseman is more athletic in general than before,” O’Grady said.
“I’m not exactly sure what his numbers were last year, I think they were down a little bit from kind of his best years. But my guess would be he’s holding out for more years or more money than some of these teams are willing to go to for whatever reason,” O’Grady added.
While Mike Sarbaugh thinks Mark Vientos has what it takes to be the first baseman, do you think he’s the perfect replacement for Pete Alonso?
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