NEW YORK (AP) — Pete Alonso’s first swing at Yankee Stadium in Baltimore was similar to many of the polar bears’ swings during his seven seasons with the New York Mets.
Alonso hit a game-tying homer, walked two and scored two runs in Friday night’s 7-2 loss to the Yankees.
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“It’s great to come out and play in new colors and it’s like okay, instead of being like crosstown rivals, now we’re division rivals,” said Alonso, who left the Mets in December to sign a five-year contract with Baltimore worth $155 million.
In the second inning, Alonso hit Will Warren out to second in right field, tying the score at 1-1. He hit his second home run in four games and hit .203 with five homers and 14 RBIs for his new team.
“He’s showing flashes of the Pete Alonso we all know and love,” Baltimore head coach Craig Albernaz said before the game. “For me, it’s probably just getting used to the change of scenery, but also getting into the flow of the seasons.”
Alonso was playing in his 20th game at Yankee Stadium and hit his eighth home run on the field.
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“You reminisce. Being here for so long, you think about a lot of things,” Alonso said. “My first exposure to professional baseball was playing for the (Brooklyn) Cyclones and then my career started there.”
The Mets did not offer Alonso a contract, and they also allowed Edwin Diaz to leave and traded Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil after going 83-79 and missing the playoffs by one game.
“Whether it’s the Orioles or myself, I feel like we’re a perfect fit,” Alonso said. “When you have something good, you focus on it.”
Alonso said he never heard from Mets owner Steve Cohen or president of baseball operations David Stearns before signing with Baltimore.
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“For me to have the respect of the people that I’m with every day, the people that I’m fighting with so to speak, from the coaches to the players, it’s obviously good to have that respect,” Alonso said. “But there have been no final conversations from a senior-level or ownership perspective.”
A Mets native, Alonso became a fan favorite at Citi Field. He was named the 2019 National League Rookie of the Year with a major league-high .260 batting average and rookie records with 53 home runs and 120 RBIs.
New York replaced him with Jorge Polanco, agreeing to a two-year contract worth $40 million. Polanco has played two games at first base for the Mets and was placed on the injured list with an injury. Bruised right wrist. New York used five first basemen and entered Friday with an MLB-worst 10-21 record.
“On paper it doesn’t look good,” Alonso said. “But I remember things in 2024 being very bleak, from an outside perspective. Baseball is a long season. It’s a marathon. Looking back at the 2024 Mets, that might be a perfect example of, yes, it sucks, but there’s five months left in the season. There’s always time.”
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB
