Red Sox Rumors: AL Rivals Poised To Steal All-Star Slugger In Free Agency

Once again, the New York Yankees stand in the way of the Boston Red Sox. But this time, it’s on the open market.

Multiples sources have been reporting the Red Sox will make a run at New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso in free agency. The New York Post’s Jon Heyman said Boston will face competition from at least two American League rivals.

“What am I hearing about the Astros? Look, I hear they like Pete Alonso,” Heyman said in a live chat for Bleacher Report. “For whatever reason they do like Pete Alonso. … That’s one thing I have heard with the Houston Astros.”

Now for the (not so) good part.

“I think the Yankees also, at least some people with the Yankees do like Alonso,” Heyman reported. “They have that first base open. Would they go for another big right-handed bat? I’m not positive on that one. I know there’s some light there for Alonso.

“Certainly Hal Steinbrenner is a guy who does like him. They’re both Gators. And not just from Florida. Went to Florida. Hal went there as a graduate student. Pete was a ballplayer and a student,” Heyman noted.

What about a return to Queens?

“(The) Mets? Want to improve their defense. I think they made that clear. So I’m not feeling right now that Alonso’s that likely to come back,” Heyman added.

A five-time All-Star, Alonso was a free agent last winter and didn’t find a multi-year, nine-figure contract to his liking so he returned to the Mets, who gave him a two-year, $54 million deal with an opt-out clause.

The two-time Home Run Derby champion said after the regular season ended he will opt out of his contract and hit the open market.

The 30-year-old Alonso hit 38 home runs this season, which was eighth-best in the majors, and drove in 126 runs, second only to Philadelphia Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber.

Alonso, a home-grown Mets star, spent seven seasons in Queens. This year he became the franchise’s all-time home run leader, surpassing eight-time All-Star Darryl Strawberry.

The Red Sox spent much of the 2025 campaign trying to find a fit at first base after watching Triston Casas go down with a season-ending knee injury.

In the Red Sox’s end-of-season press conference, chief baseball officer Craig Breslow didn’t want to commit to Casas as the team’s first baseman for 2026.