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Pete Alonso is the New York Mets' all-time leader in home runs.
Given that he started his professional baseball career with the Mets organization, it seemed somewhat safe to assume he may remain for a long time and continue to add to that homer total while remaining a fan favorite.
But instead, the man nicknamed the Polar Bear departed in the offseason.
Alonso is the newest star for the Baltimore Orioles as both clubs get their 2026 MLB seasons underway on Thursday as part of Opening Day.
Although Alonso has been wearing Orioles orange throughout Spring Training, it'll still be weird to see him out there on the field in those colors. It'll be equally odd to watch the Mets and not have Alonso patrolling first base and hitting in the heart of the lineup.
It's a departure that will take Mets fans a while to get used to. Baltimore fans will surely embrace Alonso right away.
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Why did Pete Alonso leave the Mets for the Orioles?
This all came down to money.
The Orioles gave Alonso a contract for $155 million, and reports throughout the offseason indicated that the Mets simply didn't approach that number.
New York publicly talked about how the organization was going to be putting more of an emphasis on things like defense and base running, neither of which are Alonso's strongest points.
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If he hits the way he has his whole career, he'll be worth that contract to the Orioles anyway, but the Mets decided to use their money elsewhere.
Jorge Polanco, who has played one game at first base in his MLB career, will take over that spot. Bo Bichette was the big-money signing who got the cash that didn't go to Alonso.
The Mets may turn out to be just fine, but it'll certainly be different.
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