MLB Rumors: Pete Alonso Market Softer Than Anticipated

The Boston Red Sox have been among the most popular projected landing spots for free agent first baseman Pete Alonso.

The Athletic’s Jim Bowden urged the two sides to come to an agreement at the winter meetings. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale thinks he’s as good as gone from New York. MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand listed them among the three best fits.

It’s probably not going to cost them an arm and a leg, either…

Alonso’s market is softer than anticipated, according to one official who spoke with Joel Sherman of the New York Post.

“I don’t think length is out there for Alonso,” Sherman’s first source said.

“No one is giving him five years,” Sherman’s other source said. “He would be lucky to get four, and that will likely come with a lower (average annual value) and a whopper of deferred dollars.”

Alonso, 31, has roots in the region, having met his wife during his time playing in the Cape Cod Baseball League — and apparently has told friends that the Red Sox are “high on his list” of free agent destinations in 2026.

Alonso slashed .272/.347/.524/ with 38 home runs and 126 runs batted in, while topping the National League with 41 doubles — tied with Atlanta Braves first baseman Matt Olson — in 2025. Boston needs that kind of pop in the middle of the batting order, and if the cost isn’t to high, perhaps they know where to get it.