With Opening Day a week away, this is the time of spring training where teams like to see their stars rounding into form. To that end, the New York Mets had to like what they saw from Pete Alonso on Wednesday.
During the Mets Grapefruit League game against the Houston Astros, Alonso came up with two runners on and two outs in the bottom of the sixth inning with New York down 3-0. Houston pitcher Adam Morgan threw a slider in a bad location and 373 feet later, the game was tied.
GOOOOOONE! 🐻❄️💪 pic.twitter.com/EoOVMlD7uL
— New York Mets (@Mets) March 31, 2022
It was the first home run of what’s been a trying spring for Alonso.
On the one hand, a spring training home run doesn’t count. But listening to the fans in attendance, we can’t say it didn’t matter. And this wasn’t just a matter of the microphones being in the right places. Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News verified that the home run drew a loud reaction.
Pete Alonso just mashed his first home run of spring. Mets fans were waiting for it; Clover Park was shaking.
— Deesha (@DeeshaThosar) March 31, 2022
And judging by the reaction of people watching at home, that’s not surprising.
Pete Alonso is the best power hitter in baseball right now.
— Harvey Castellano (@HarveyCast) March 31, 2022
PETE ALONSO. THREE RUN HOMER. OH MY GOD.
— olivia (@oliviapipia) March 30, 2022
Pete. Alonso. https://t.co/hSD9ELn6pS
— Alex H. Nagler (@Nagler) March 31, 2022
Pete Alonso heard everyone saying he was off to a slow start this Spring Training and then went and did this 😏 https://t.co/HbOmX3IgTx
— michelle (@Mich_Scorts11) March 31, 2022
👑👑👑 #LGM https://t.co/UrrGXUVRwI
— Michael Zimmelman (@MZimmel) March 31, 2022
Alonso even acknowledged how good the swing felt in an interview shortly after the home run.
"That felt nice, that felt really nice" – Pete Alonso on his first homer of the spring pic.twitter.com/nB7dK2J47J
— SNY (@SNYtv) March 31, 2022
Coming off of a busy offseason that saw them add Max Scherzer to a starting rotation that already features Jacob deGrom, the Mets are on a short list of World Series favorites heading into 2022.
Much like fans shouldn’t get too upset over a bad performance in spring training, they shouldn’t get too excited about a good one. But if Alonso can keep this swing with him when the team goes north, it will be a great sign for the Mets and their fans.
