Pete Alonso Refusing to Take Accountability is a Problem, as is his Performance

Pete Alonso is a player that I have desperately wanted to defend throughout this entire season. Really from the moment sports talk radio hosts were calling him a clubhouse problem and making baseless claims about him last year, I felt there was a necessity to appreciate and respect the kind of power hit this franchise rarely sees. In my previous article focused on Pete, I stated that my biggest problem with a Pete Alonso extension was his lack of growth as a leader. Some notes, first and foremost his biggest problem this season is actually his lack of production with runners on. Secondly, he still isn’t a leader and is still too focused on looking like someone with something to prove rather than a focus on team success. Third, when I say that Pete isn’t a leader I’m not saying he isn’t a good teammate, a good clubhouse guy, or likeable. Pete constantly does charity events, he’s learned Spanish to more properly communicate with teammates (and was supposedly learning Japanese for Senga), and I truly do believe that I likes playing in New York. However, whether or not Pete’s character is one of positive intentions, he has constantly come across as selfish.

There are the easy shots that you could take “Oh he shouldn’t be doing the home run derby anymore its embarrassing” I don’t care about Pete getting bounced in the first round of the derby the rest of his career. I care that he very clearly didn’t deserve to be an all-star and was chosen because he wouldn’t do the derby unless he was an all-star. Let’s talk about the most recent interview though, because I personally felt insulted. First off Pete claimed he was on pace for “close to 40 home runs”, he’s on pace for just above 30. Secondly he’s only 1 home run ahead of Francisco Lindor (who deserves to be in the MVP conversation but that’s its own article) so can we stop playing the “Power hitters like Pete don’t grow on trees” card? Pete then went on to talk about how he was an all-star this year (something he shouldn’t brag about it was a participation trophy of a selection) and how he doesn’t see a point in focusing on the negatives. In fairness, he shouldn’t, there’s no reason for a player to allow themselves to be trapped in a negative mindset. I however, have no issues with focusing in on Pete’s negatives, and “Not dwelling on the low points” does not mean “Don’t try and improve to produce more”. I do not understand how, HOW you could watch Pete Alonso this season and think he deserves even the original 7yr/$158 million extension offer that the Mets had given him.

.198/.310/.358 (.668 OPS), there’s Pete’s triple slash with runners in scoring position. Here’s a list of Mets with a higher batting average and OPS than Pete with RISP:

• Francisco Lindor

• Brandon Nimmo

• JD Martinez

• Jose Iglesias

• Tyrone Taylor

• Harrison Bader

• Mark Vientos

• Francisco Alvarez

• Jeff McNeil

• Luis Torrens

• Jesse Winker

• Starling Marte

• Brett Baty

• DJ Stewart

Ah but no worries, Pete is a power guy we don’t need to focus on his average just focus on the home runs…of which he has 4 with RISP…

Here’s a list of guys on the Mets with more HR’s with RISP:

• Francisco Lindor

• Brandon Nimmo

• JD Martinez

And some guys who have the same amount:

• Jeff McNeil

• DJ Stewart

• Jesse Winker

Alright, doesn’t need the pop, what matters is that he drives in runs at a high pace so that-

You already know where this is going here’s guys with more RBI with RISP (33 for Pete) this season:

• Francisco Lindor

• Brandon Nimmo

• JD Martinez

• Jesse Winker

Jeff McNeil and Harrison Bader have spent the majority of the season at the bottom of the lineup while Pete has been batting mostly cleanup. Jeff has 29 RBI with RISP, and Bader has 31. I can keep going but it’s going to start being insulting. Pete is having a weak year and has been one of the Mets least reliable hitters all season when it counts. He hits in the cleanup hole, really the only reason he has the tally he does in terms of runs batted in with RISP. And he’s barely above Harrison Bader? The guy who’s constantly in the 9 hole? Are we serious? I’m tired of hearing excuses, I’m tired of the lack of accountability, and I’m most tired of the poor performance. With so much the Mets could do this offseason, giving Pete a long term deal has went from something I wanted, to something I still thought was beneficial, to something I actively hope they avoid.