After painfully missing the boat to the 2023 MLB playoffs, the Chicago Cubs are turning their attention to what should be a long and intriguing offseason. The rumor mill has already started to link New York Mets star slugger Pete Alonso to the North Siders (h/t Locked On Cubs).
Apparently, the Cubs “are going to do everything they can” in order to trade for Pete Alonso, Bruce Levine said on 670 The Score. Moreover, Chicago is said to be interested in pairing Alonso with Cody Bellinger.
Pete Alonso would be a massive get for the Cubs if they managed to pull off such a trade in the offseason. The Mets' first baseman was among the key holdovers of New York when the franchise decided to part ways with some of their most expensive assets ahead of the 2023 MLB trade deadline–when they let go of the likes of Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer. Alonso has at least one more season of full team control with his final arbitration year coming up in 2024. He inked a one-year deal worth $14.5 million with the Mets last January to avoid arbitration in 2023.
The 28-year-old Alonso is coming off his third All-Star campaign despite batting just .217 in 2022. He also had a .318 OBP and a .504 slugging percentage with 46 home runs and 118 RBIs to make up for his cold batting average.
With the Mets naming a new president of baseball operations in David Stearns, it will be interesting to see how New York handles the Pete Alonso trade rumors and how much the Cubs would invest in their rumored pursuit of the hard-hitting Polar Bear.