Peter Alonso Gives Mets fans Glimmer of Hope
Well, it’s the MLB All-Star break so we were given the opportunity to watch the up and coming stars in the Futures Game. The game provided Mets fans all over the country to see Peter Alonso, a top prospect in the organization.
If you tuned in to the Futures Game you saw Peter Alonso hit a moonshot of a home run that traveled 415 feet. Alonso is looking more and more like the future first baseman for the New York Mets.
Dominic Smith was once thought to be the future first baseman for the Mets but hasn’t performed well. In Las Vegas this season he hit just .260/.343/.370, quite mediocre given the Pacific Coast League and friendly home park context. In the majors he’s played 77 games, 238 at-bats over the last two years with an anemic .183/.216/.324 line.
That’s not going to get it done. The Mets have even tried to move Smith to left field but Smith has yet to impress in the outfield defensively and obviously has to hit more at any position. Who knows where Dominic Smith will land within the organization or elsewhere, but it doesn’t seem likely he’ll be at first base.
Alonso, meanwhile, got off to an excellent start with the Binghamton Rumble Ponies (AA). He played in 65 games and hit .314/.440/.573 with 15 home runs. Alonso has since been promoted to the Las Vegas 51s (AAA) and has appeared in 23 games. He’s only hitting .190 thus far but with six homers and has continued to show power and a high walk rate. His mammoth of a home run in the Futures Game was the explanation point.
In my view, Alonso is proving that he will be the guy, not Smith. Although we need to see a higher batting average out of him at Vegas, Alonso offers two key things that Smith hasn’t: impact power and some excitement for the future.
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