Padres Rumors: Friars Listed as Potential Landing Spot for Pete Alonso if Mets Decide to Trade Him
The Padres have stars scattered through their lineup and their pitching rotation.
After swinging big last year in free agency by signing Xander Bogaerts to an 11-year $280 million deal, they also secured Manny Machado for 11 years and $350 million to lock in their infield.
Additionally, they extended Yu Darvish on a 6-year deal for $108 million to retain one of their aces for the next half-decade.
Clearly, money is just an object in San Diego, and that could come up again this offseason.
Over at Bleacher Report, Zachary D. Rymer ranked the top landing spots for Pete Alonso if the Mets decide to trade him, and San Diego came in at the No. 6 spot.
The Padres have gotten fewer home runs from first base than any other team, so they're a dream fit for Alonso in that regard. But would they turn Jake Cronenworth into a utility man to accommodate him? Or plan to use Alonso at DH? These are tricky questions.
The Friars are not shy about spending money and are also not wary of sending top prospects to get guaranteed stars.
Last year, to bring Juan Soto to Petco Park, the team sent away four of their top five prospects to Washington: CJ Abrams, Robert Hassell III, MacKenzie Gore, and James Wood. The deal was massive and put the league on notice that the Friars wanted to win.
A similar move could be made this offseason if the Padres don't make the playoffs this year. Wanting to add another piece could come in the form of adding the power-hitting Alonso after the Mets cleared house at this year's trade deadline.
What would a package look like?
The 28-year-old first baseman brings a lot of talent and much-needed security to the position. In his first five years in the league, not counting 2020, Alonso has never played under 152 games for the Mets. He has only missed 8 games this year as he dealt with an injury.
When he is in the lineup he provides a powerful bat already at 185 career home runs.
The slugging first basemen will be a free agent after the 2024 season so any team that does trade for him will have him for one guaranteed year as both sides would most likely try to settle on a new contract.
A package including players like Jackson Merrill (MLB Pipelines No. 9 Prospect), Robby Snelling (No.65), and Dylan Lesko (No.68) would most likely headline the deal while MLB-ready talent such as Jake Cronenworth could also be mentioned.
Cronenworth would most likely replace one of those previously listed names. It is worth noting Cronenworth does have an 8-team no-trade clause, as well.
It would be a hefty price tag but it might just be the talent boost this lineup needs to get over the hump and truly compete for the NL West division title next year.
