Sure, the intangibles are great, but what is his WAR?
“Win over replacement” has become a deciding factor among baseball executives as they consider who to keep, who to shop with, and what price is appropriate.
Polar bear Pete's salary has also not been paid.
Vinny Pasquantino, first baseman for the Kansas City Royals, agrees.
During an appearance on Monday's podcast, “The Chris Rose Rotation,” the Richmond native underestimated Billy Beane's valuable accomplishments as a first baseman, his breed, and the Mets. 's front office insisted they should take into consideration Pete Alonso's career average of 3.8 and everything else he brings. To the table.
“If you play first base, these days you basically have to hit an OPS of .850 to get paid.” Pascantino has begun. “[That’s] Okay, it needs to be done. But teams use WAR…
“If you play first, it's very difficult to get a WAR number because it just drops off so much based on position…What are these?” [front office] When it comes to catching a baseball, people have decided that the ball handler, more than just about anyone else, is the least valuable player in the world. ”
Coach Pascantino then turned his attention to Alonso. As the paper's Joel Sherman reported in early January, Alonso is expected to sign somewhere outside of Queens after turning down a three-year, $68 million to $70 million offer from the Mets.
“It's really tough. Pete has been the face of the Mets for the last six years, so I think that has to mean something,” Pasquantino said. “I'm not in the room, but it doesn't seem like it.” [the Mets’ front office] He values what he brings to the table beyond numbers. ”
The first baseman concluded his soapbox speech, perhaps a little self-serving, by looking to the Mets' National League rivals out west in Los Angeles.
“I understand the Dodgers have more money than any team, but they're investing in players that make sense off the field, and they're winning.” spoke.
He certainly has his end goal in mind, and the Dodgers have won the regular season, the World Series, and even in free agency.
But when WAR is used by the Mets, much less in other Major League Baseball front offices, it's hard to say how to compare players at different positions. Really impossible for anyone outside the room.
During the 2024 season, Alonso recorded 2.9 offensive wins over his replacement. That mark tied him for 68th in the league, along with players like Manny Machado and Joc Pederson.
On the other side of the diamond, Alonso accumulated a defensive WAR rating of -1.1 (though only 80 players finished 2024 with a positive mark in this category).
Baseball Savant is a website that provides advanced analysis and visualization of Major League Baseball. I don't really praise Alonso's defensive work.. In 2024, he ranked 83rd in points allowed above average and 82nd in outs out of 84 players.
