Royals' Pasquantino: Mets don't value what Alonso brings to table

Kansas City Royals first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino doesn't think the New York Mets understand the true value of Pete Alonso.

"Pete has been the face of the Mets for the past six years. And that should mean something, in my opinion," Pasquantino said during an episode of "Chris Rose Sports."

"Obviously I'm not in the room, but it does not seem that they value the things that he brings to the table other than the numbers. And that's what teams are doing nowadays, and I personally think it hurts teams."

Pasquantino believes teams like the Mets rely too heavily on the WAR statistic, which front offices use to measure a player's value in all facets of the game. First basemen usually don't grade out well in WAR because the position is widely considered the easiest to play.

"If you play first base, you essentially have to put up a .850 OPS to get paid nowadays," Pasquantino said.

He added: "You need to perform, but teams use WAR and, if you play first, it is very difficult to get that WAR number up because it gets so dragged down simply by the position that you play."

Alonso, who posted 2.1 fWAR last season and has accumulated 17.3 fWAR throughout his six-year career, remains a free agent after reaching a stalemate with the Mets.

The 30-year-old reportedly turned down a three-year offer from New York worth between roughly $68 million and $70 million, and he's believed to be looking for a new team to sign with.

The Mets' offer came after Alonso helped transform the team's clubhouse with his popular "Polar Bear" persona and clobbered the winning homer to help New York advance past the Milwaukee Brewers in last year's NL wild-card series. He's hit the second-most home runs in MLB since he entered the league in 2019.