by Earlier this week, a prominent baseball person told me that the Mets’ decision to let Pete Alonso walk and sign with the Orioles is like when the Yankees let Reggie Jackson walk away to sign with the Angels after the 1981 season.
They went on to say that the “Mets fans are going to revolt when Pete hits like 40-plus home runs next year. The Orioles come to Citi Field in September, right? Remember ‘Steinbrenner sucks?’ I could definitely see that happening.”
I listened. I nodded. Then I told them, respectfully, that they were nuts.
According to the New York Times, the Yankees pursued Jackson “somewhat at a distance,” without ever making a firm offer. ‘’I’m very happy to join a club that really seemed to pursue me and wanted me,’’ Jackson said.
Similarly, the Mets never made Alonso a formal offer when it became clear that their first baseman wanted a five-year deal.
After he signed with the O’s, Alonso said, “It’s an exciting time in Birdland, and I’m honored to be a part of it.”
Like Reggie, who watched the Yankees court Dave Winfield in the offseason of 1980 and sign him to the richest deal in baseball at the time, Alonso was still unsigned in the offseason of 2024 when the Mets broke the bank for Juan Soto.
And that’s where the similarities end.
Alonso was a beloved homegrown Met, and leaves the team as its all-time home run career holder with 264. Jackson won five World Series, two with the Yankees, and joined the Angels with 425 career home runs, which at that time was 18th in baseball history.
Reggie was remarkable in 1982, hitting 39 home runs with 101 RBI, but at 36, his best days were behind him. He would play four more years with the Angels, one year with Oakland, before retiring with 563 career HRs.
He also had a magical night on a rainy night in April at Yankee Stadium.
He began the night with a base hit, scored on a suicide squeeze bunt in his second at bat, and then, in true Reggie fashion, clocked a 450-foot home run into the third deck off Ron Guidry in the seventh inning of a 3-1 Angels’ win.
The cheers of “Reggie, Reggie, Reggie,” exploded, followed by even louder chants of “Steinbrenner Sucks.”
The Yankees were also terrible in 1982, a 79-83 disaster that saw three managers: Bob Lemon was fired after a 6-8 start, Gene Michael was fired after going 44-42, and Clyde King, who finished up at 29-33.
It was a perfect storm, and it would take until 1995 for the Yankees to make the playoffs again.
It’s entirely possible that this Mets season could be a failure, and the players brought in to replace Alonso, Brandon Nimmo, Edwin Diaz, and Jeff McNeil could fail to measure up. It’s also very possible that Alonso could come back to Citi Field and hit a few home runs, and the fans will cheer the Polar Bear and scream bloody murder.
But Reggie Jackson and Pete Alonso are not the same, and really don’t belong in the same sentence.
