The New York Mets retired ace pitcher Dwight “Doc” Gooden’s No. 16 jersey on the same day that All-Star first baseman Pete Alonso said he would like to end his career as a one-club player.
Regarding perhaps playing with the Mets for the rest of his career, Alonso stated, “That is definitely something I have thought about and something that would be so incredibly special,” as reported by Mike Puma of the New York Post. It’s extremely uncommon in the modern game. Very few people are able to accomplish that.”
Since the spring of 2019, Alonso has hit more home runs (198) in the regular season than any other player. He made his MLB debut approximately five years ago. He has only appeared for the Mets at the highest level. As recently as last week, it was suggested that Mets owner Steve Cohen might permit club president of baseball operations David Stearns to shop Alonso ahead of this summer’s trade deadline if the team has a losing record through the All-Star break. The slugger, who turns 30 in December, is still on track to become a free agent following the current season.
The Mets started the season with a 0-5, but as of Monday, they were 7-8 and in the middle of a three-game home series against the 11-5 Pittsburgh Pirates.
In his interview with Puma, Alonso talked on the “honour” of beginning and ending their major league careers with the same team—a distinction that former Mets captain David Wright and New York Yankees great Derek Jeter relished. Alonso added that he is “one hundred percent” aware of the Mets’ “beloved” status, as seen by the chants of his name during Sunday’s 2-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals.
