New York Mets legend Darryl Strawberry left the organization as a free agent after the 1990 season and subsequently signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers. 

Thus, Strawberry understands the situation All-Star first baseman Pete Alonso faces this fall.

“I ended up playing out my free-agent year — something I wish I wouldn’t have done,” Strawberry explained during a conversation with Mike Puma of the New York Post. “I wish I would have been able to come to some type of terms, but I didn’t and it let me get to the point of free agency. … That’s a big decision the organization is going to have to make.” 

Alonso is eligible for free agency after the 2024 season and recently hired Scott Boras as his new agent. The slugger, who turns 29 years old in December, was linked with the Chicago Cubs earlier this month, but it appears he will stay with the Mets through Opening Day next spring even if he doesn’t sign an extension with the Amazins this winter. 

The Baseball Almanac notes that Strawberry is the Mets’ all-time leader with 252 home runs. Alonso went deep 46 times in 2023 and entered the offseason with 192 career homers. 

“It’s about time,” Strawberry said about potentially losing his record to Alonso. “Time passes by, it’s a new generation of players and they should be able to break records if they stay long enough and stay healthy and be productive. That’s what baseball is all about. … I want Pete to do well. I want him to be a Met. I want him to break the records.” 

Hall of Famer and Mets icon Mike Piazza made it known this past August he believed the club would keep Alonso beyond next year. 

“There’s work to be done,” Piazza said, and that’s still the case with David Stearns now serving as Mets president of baseball operations.