Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
Pete Alonso was ranked fifth on MLB Network’s 2023 list of top first basemen in the game.
The four players ranked above Alonso were:
- Paul Goldschmidt
- Freddie Freeman
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
- José Abreu
The Polar Bear is coming off a stellar 2022 season that saw him smash 40 home runs, knock in 131 runs, and accumulate 4.0 fWAR (fourth among first baseman) over 161 games. He ranked first among all first basemen in home runs and RBI, he ranked second in slugging, eighth in on-base percentage, and third in runs.
While the first three players are at least arguably better than Alonso currently, Abreu’s ranking doesn’t make a ton of sense, especially after a slight drop in power output in 2022. Neither’s defense leaves much to be desired, and they’re also at very different stages of their career (where one is assumed to be in decline and the other is assumed to be entering his peak).
Nevertheless, Alonso and his newly agreed-upon arbitration deal will play for Team USA in the upcoming World Baseball Classic before returning to Queens to get ready for a follow-up to his 2022 campaign. Another average 30-homer, 100-RBI season for Alonso will place him in the top 5 in Mets history in home runs and top 10 in RBIs in just his fifth season.
Other Mets ranked on lists include: Brandon Nimmo (No. 4 center fielder), Starling Marte (No. 7 right fielder) and Edwin Díaz (No. 1 reliever).
