The Chicago White Sox should seriously consider signing this former rookie of the year

I know this is an innovative idea, but the Chicago White Sox should seriously consider signing former Rookie of the Year, 4-time All-Star and top-10 MVP first baseman Pete Alonso to a deal. Alonso, who hit the free agency market at the age of 30 and hoped that given what he has done in his career, in addition to having a strong postseason run in 2024 for the New York Mets, that would get him a lucrative deal already long term. So far, that hasn’t come to fruition for Alonso, as his market is colder than Antarctica in summer.

Alonso has proven that he is one of the best power hitters in baseball even though his power has seemingly been declining. Since I came to the league alonso His slugging percentage has steadily declined throughout his career, starting at .583 in his rookie year, until falling to .459 in 2024. This is a drastic drop and could be the reason why teams are deciding to stay away from Pete, as well as his price. tag, and that would pigeonhole the roster of a team in which he could only play first base and designated hitter.

However, there are some things teams aren’t taking into account as to why Alonso’s power numbers might be declining but he has the ability to bounce back. Since he debuted with the New York Mets, which he did back in 2019. Pete Alonso He has not played less than 150 games in a season (except the 2020 season), averaging 157.8 games per season. In 2024 that was no exception, with Alonso playing in all 162 games where he had 146 hits, 31 doubles, 34 home runs, 88 RBIs, for a line of .240/.329/.459 for an OPS and OPS+ of .788 and 123.

alonso For his part, even though his numbers are “down,” he still ranks in the 89th percentile in barrel percentage, the 93rd percentile in bat speed, which is a good sign. And the best thing that bodes well for Alonso and should show teams that sometimes numbers can be deceiving is that Pete Alonso passes the “eye test” that shows he is still a great baseball player.

Alonso’s only suitor so far has apparently been his former club, the New York Mets, who have not been willing to pay the asking price of $200 million for Pete Alonso. Until now, the New York Mets have only been willing to offer Pete Alonso a three-year, $90 million contract, which is far from what he is looking for. Other teams “showing interest” are the Toronto Blue Jays and the San Francisco Giants.

Now let’s be serious, those reports are just smoke and mirrors. Anyone who has been following baseball this offseason and even in previous offseasons knows that both the Toronto Blue Jays and the San Francisco Giants are the two teams that are always used to increase the cost to force the decision of the actual team in play ( in this case the New York Mets) to put more money into signing the free agents they want.

We saw this happen when Shohei Ohtani hit the market and we had the “plane incident” where it was reported that Ohtani was on a plane to Toronto, which turned out to be false. It even happened this offseason with Juan Soto and Corbin Burnes, who were linked to both teams and didn’t end up signing with either team.

It’s baffling how teams were so eager to sign much older first basemen instead of Alonso, who is still in his prime. For example, Paul Goldschmidt signed with the New York Yankees, Christian Walker signed with the Houston Astros and Carlos Sanatana decided to return to his old club the Cleveland Guardians, all the teams that needed a first baseman decided to pass on Pete Alonso. Of course, given what Alonso deserves to be paid and the Yankees have already negotiated a $200 million contract for left-hander Max Fried, that denied them being a legitimate suitor for Alonso.

Current options at first base and designated hitter

Like I said, the Chicago White Sox signing Pete Alonso is an innovative idea and honestly, it most likely won’t happen, but never say never. Currently the Chicago White Sox have just Andrew Vaughan as your first primary base on your roster. Matt Thais Who the Chicago White Sox acquired in a trade with the Chicago Cubs has the ability to play both first and third base, he is an option the White Sox can turn to if Vaughn needs a day off or is injured, but that is not a viable option. option.

Thaiss appears to be the backup catcher behind Korey Lee, who will be the starting catcher on opening day. Now there is an outside possibility for a newly acquired receiving prospect. kyle teel breaking camp with the Chicago White Sox and revealing that he will be in spring training competing for a spot on the Major League roster. So really, Andrew Vaughn is the only first baseman. Vaughn has proven to be durable and, for the most part, able to stay healthy playing around 150 games over the last two seasons. But since injuries are a part of baseball, adding another option would benefit the White Sox.

For the designated hitter role FanGraphs projects Zach DeLoach, 26, as the starting designated hitter for Opening Day. 2025 will mark DeLoach’s second season in the big leagues with hopes of improving in 2025. However, DeLoach is unproven and adding Alonso to the designated hitter role would be a huge upgrade for the time being.

So why sign Pete Alonso?

With the Alonso market as cold as it is and the New York Mets being the only team vying to sign Alonso and getting nothing, this could be a golden opportunity for the Chicago White Sox. I don’t foresee Alonso getting the lucrative or long-term contract he so desperately wants this offseason. I believe what is happening and what will happen that Alonso will sign an agreement similar to the one Cody Bellinger he signed with the Chicago Cubs in February 2024. A deal like this would be exactly what the Chicago White Sox would be in the market to do.

I know the Chicago White Sox are looking to spend a lot of money on free agents, but signing Pete would actually be mutually beneficial for both the White Sox and Pete Alonso. The White Sox are projected to have a budget of around $66.32 million by 2025, according to spotrac, so they have some money to spend. Spotrac projects Alonso’s market value to be around $30 million a year, which would be a lot for the White Sox.

Think about the big picture, let’s say the Chicago White Sox give Alonso a two-year deal for $60 million to $30 million per year with an opt-out after the first year. Giving Alonso this contract would be the second largest contract the Chicago White Sox would award and the largest awarded to the current outfielder. andres benintendi who signed a 75 million dollars over five years deal in 2023. Although the Chicago White Sox won’t be competitive in 2025, they won’t be the worst team with the Miami Marlins looking to take that mantle.

The signing of Pete Alonso with the White Sox would give him the possibility of reestablishing his market. On the White Sox he can still spend some time at first base, but also get some rest by getting some reps at designated hitter, since Andrew Vaughn also needs to play in the field. If Alonso ends up performing and recovering, the Chicago White Sox would have one of the hottest trade pieces at next year’s deadline to further accelerate the rebuild. Even if Pete has the exact same season in 2025 as he did in 2024, that would still be a benefit to the White Sox’s rebuilding efforts.

Again, this is an innovative idea that probably won’t happen, and Pete Alonso may end up returning to the New York Mets when it’s all said and done. However, the Chicago White Sox must consider all options and get creative to keep fans interested and excited about the future of the franchise.