Despite Loss, Alonso Ties Strawberry For Mets All-Time Home Run Record

Pete Alonso will be the New York Mets’ home run king all by himself with his next blast. For the moment, he is sharing the crown with Darryl Strawberry. Alonso blasted his 26th of the season and 252nd of his carer in Saturday night’s second inning in Milwaukee.

Both Alonso and Strawberry have some things in common. They were both drafted by the Mets, debuted three years later and won Rookie of the Year. They were both All-Stars, home run champions, and Home Run Derby winners. Both belted memorable homers in the playoffs.

Now, both sit at 252 home runs in a Mets uniform.

Alonso, who has 26 long balls this year, was asked about the record after he hit home run No. 250 in a win against the San Francisco Giants:

“The record is obviously something that is really special, and it’s meaningful, but right now, in the heat of it, I’m not too focused on that,” he said. “I’m just focused on wins and what I can help this team do to win each game. We’re in the thick of a playoff race right now. I’ll think of all the other stuff in the offseason or whenever I have time to.”

“I don’t want my record to stand,” Strawberry, 63, told Anthony DiComo of MLB.com in June after Alonso passed David Wright for second place on the franchise home run list. “I’m not a baseball player no more. I’m a man outside of baseball. This is for these guys. You’re happy when you see that, when you see a guy return after having so much he had to go through, and now he puts it all together. That’s fun.”

The Mets selected Alonso, 30, in the second round of the 2016 draft from the University of Florida. In three minor-league seasons he hit 59 homers before debuting on March 28, 2019 . His first home run came in his fourth game, a 7-3 victory over the Marlins. Keith Hernandez was in the television booth for the call.

Strawberry was the first overall pick of the 1980 draft out of Crenshaw High School in Los Angeles. In four minor-league seasons with Mets affiliates before his debut, he hit 55 homers. He homered in his eighth game on May 16, 1983. Hernandez would join Strawberry on the Mets the following month after a trade with the Cardinals.

Alonso, 30, a five-time All-Star and two-time derby champ, led the majors in homers (53) in 2019, RBIs (131) in 2022 and has two top-1o MVP finishes.

Strawberry was a seven-time All-Star with the Mets and a derby co-champ in 1986 with Wally Joyner of the Angels. He led the National League in homers (39), slugging percentage (.545) and OPS (.911) in 1988 when he was second in MVP voting, one of his three top-10 MVP finishes with the Mets.

Strawberry’s No. 18 was retired by the Mets last year. Alonso’s No. 20 may very well join it one day.

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