Pete Alonso’s departure to Baltimore on a five-year, $155 million deal left the Mets scrambling for first-base options. After checking in on Cody Bellinger, according to Boston Globe’s Tim Healey, they’re now looking at former MVP Paul Goldschmidt.
It’s not the flashiest move, but Goldschmidt brings something the Mets desperately need right now: stability.
He hit .274 last season with 10 home runs and 45 RBI. The power numbers dropped, but Statcast data shows he’s still making quality contact with a 43.7 percent hard-hit rate and 7.9 percent barrel rate. Those metrics suggest the swing’s still there even if the results weren’t.
His splits tell a better story. Against lefties, the 38-year-old posted a .336 average with seven homers – the kind of production that gives managers options instead of forcing platoon situations.
Goldschmidt won MVP with St. Louis in 2022, then served as a stopgap with the Yankees last year. But they’re moving on. Ben Rice’s their plan now, and they’re sticking with it.
The Mets don’t have that luxury.
They lost Alonso’s 35-40 home run production and don’t have an in-house replacement ready for everyday first-base duties. As their offseason plans get reshuffled again, Goldschmidt fits as a short-term solution that stabilizes the position while buying time.
The first-base market isn’t exactly loaded. Ryan O’Hearn, Nathaniel Lowe, Munetaka Murakami, Kazuma Okamoto and Rhys Hoskins are among the available options. That’s not a group that screams “franchise cornerstone.”
Now the Mets have to solve this publicly, through free agency or trades, with fewer clean answers on the board than they’d probably like. Goldschmidt may not be a long-term fix, but he’s one of the few dependable names available.
After losing Alonso, the Mets’ margin for error just got smaller. Goldschmidt won’t replace that production, but he might keep them from scrambling all season long.
