Orioles Stun Baseball World By Stealing Pete Alonso From Mets With Massive $155M Contract

The 2025-2026 Major League Baseball offseason is the last before the league and players association start work on a new collective bargaining agreement. Heading into the free agency period, speculation had run rampant that the offseason would be more active than previous years, as teams looked to lock players in ahead of a potential work stoppage.

Well, turns out, that speculation was completely accurate. And it seems to be mostly affecting the New York Mets. 

The Mets got things started by trading longtime outfielder Brandon Nimmo to the Texas Rangers for Marcus Semien. They signed free agent reliever Devin Williams from the New York Yankees, while their former closer, Edwin Diaz, remained available. Thoughts of a super bullpen quickly ended, however, when the Los Angeles Dodgers signed Diaz for three years and $69 million.

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On Wednesday, the biggest hammer fell, however. Pete Alonso, who's spent his entire career in Queens, winning awards, putting up consistently elite power numbers, has found a new team. The…Baltimore Orioles?

Jun 6, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso (20) reacts after a play at the plate in the ninth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

Orioles Make Stunning, High-Priced Move To Get Alonso

Multiple reports broke Wednesday, led by ESPN's Jeff Passan, that the Orioles had agreed to sign Pete Alonso for five years and $155 million. That's a huge financial commitment for an organization that's purposefully avoided spending to sign top players in free agency, and it's a bit of a surprising one.

The Orioles, whose offense was one of baseball's worst, finally seemed poised to address those concerns this winter, pursuing Kyle Schwarber. And after Schwarber agreed to return to Philadelphia, Alonso might have been the best offensive upgrade on the market. Still, the Mets seemed like the obvious destination. A home-grown player, massive fan favorite, who launched one of the biggest homers in recent Mets history during the 2024 Wild Card series. But New York's front office seems intent on a reset, and boy oh boy, are they resetting their roster.

For the Orioles, this is a gigantic offensive upgrade and immediately deepens a lineup that was already trending toward improvement in 2026. Gunnar Henderson had a very good, but not elite, season in 2025 after battling injuries. Jackson Holliday showed flashes of elite potential and will play all of 2026 at just 22-years-old. Top prospects Coby Mayo and Samuel Basallo will look to improve. They traded for Taylor Ward, an above-average offensive player from the Angels. On the pitching side, they upgraded their bullpen by signing Ryan Helsley, also from the Mets. Add Alonso to a young lineup filled with potential, and suddenly you have a realistic contender in the AL East. As long as they keep upgrading the rotation, that is.

Alsono's averaged 39 home runs per season since 2021, was 41 percent better than league average offensively in 2025, and will play all of next season at age 31. It's a risk for a small market team to take, but it's a risk worth taking. 

For the Mets, this means they've now lost Nimmo, Diaz and Alonso off a roster that failed to make the playoffs in 2025. Will they take the financial savings from Alonso and apply it toward a massive deal for Kyle Tucker? Or bring in Alex Bregman, shifting Mark Vientos to first? Do they pursue a stopgap, cheaper option like Ryan O'Hearn? There's plenty of options for one of basebll's richest teams, but it's hard to argue that New York is better today than they were a few weeks ago.

And the best news for baseball fans is that the free agency season is flying, with yet another small market team has shown a willingness to spend money. The more teams trying to win, the more entertaining baseball can be. Baltimore, if nothing else, will be a team to watch in 2026.