02 Jul Getting To Know: New York Mets Rookie All Star Pete Alonso
Three Mets, including rookie
first baseman
Pete Alonso, were
selected to the
All-Star Game,
this year.Alonso
will also be one of
the participants in the Home Run
Derby on July 8. Entering Sunday’s
game, Alonso ranks second in the
majors with 28 home runs. Alonso
is the fourth Met to make the All-
Star Game as a rookie, joining Tom
Seaver, Jerry Koosman and Dwight
Gooden.
Name: Peter Morgan Alonso
Born: December 7, 1994 (age
24) in Tampa, Florida
Drafted: The New York Mets
selected Alonso in the second
round, with the 64th overall
selection, of the 2016 Major
League Baseball draft.
He signed with the Mets for a
$909,200 signing bonus, and
spent 2016 with the Brooklyn
Cyclones of the Class A-Short Season
New York-Penn League, where
he posted a .321 batting average
with five home runs and 21 RBIs
in thirty games. In 2018 Alonso
crushed 42 homers in 159 games
between Double-A Binghamton,
Triple-A Las Vegas, and the Arizona
Fall League.
Which team did you root for
growing up in Tampa?
Growing up, I was super spoiled
because Yankees spring training
was 10 minutes from my house,
the Tampa Bay Rays are 35 minutes
away, and there was a huge
baseball culture in Tampa. People
ask all the time who I rooted for
as a kid. The answer: no one. I had
no true loyalty to a specific team. I
just loved baseball. I loved watching
it just as much as I did playing
it. I guess you could call me a
baseball junkie.
If someone asked you to give
a scouting report of yourself,
what would you say? Definitely
my biggest strength is my bat,
but also to go with that, one
thing I take pride in is my aggressive
approach at the plate. I
have a real simple but aggressive
approach. If I see a ball that is
remotely in my zone, or if I see a
pitch that I think I can drive, I’m
going to swing at it, or I’m going
to take a chance that I’m going to
take a good hack at it.
What drives you? My passion.
I love this game. There’s a lot of
times where I feel like a fan not
a player. But I’m lucky enough
to play this game. I want to be
known as a winner, I want to be
known as a guy that can help a
team win. I just love to compete.
I think it’s the best game in the
world.
How do you like playing for the
New York Mets so far? I feel like
I’m living the dream. The New
York Mets seem to treat all their
ball players great. It doesnt make
a difference which round you
were selected in, they treat all
their players with class. I feel very
fortunate.
How does it feel to be selected
to the All Star team your rookie
season? It’s a dream come true.
I wouldn’t think in a million years
I’d be an All-Star as a rookie. It’s
crazy. It’s a dream come true.