The agents for New York Mets prospect Peter Alonso are not happy with the team over their decision not to promote their client to the big leagues with a September call-up.
Mets assistant GM John Ricco told reporters on Tuesday that they will not be calling up Alonso despite the slugger bashing 33 homers in the minors this year. Ricco said that the team has too many other players they need to get at-bats at first base, so Alonso will have to wait until spring training to show the coaches what he can do.
Ricco: "He's done everything we've asked. But the way we see it, the lack of playing time is a big factor. We're going to have Dom Sith, Jay Bruce and Wilmer [Flores] to all play 1B."
— Tim Britton (@TimBritton) August 28, 2018
Ricco: "[Alonso] will have a full spring training [next year] in front of the major-league staff where we'll get to evaluate."
— Tim Britton (@TimBritton) August 28, 2018
According to Mets reporter James Wagner of The New York Times, Alonso’s agents Adam Karon and Tripper Johnson called the news “disheartening.”
Peter Alonso’s agents Adam Karon and Tripper Johnson had this to say about Alonso, who has hit 33 homers and driven in 111 this season, not getting a major league call-up: pic.twitter.com/dTEVJZzebj
— James Wagner (@ByJamesWagner) August 28, 2018
Alonso, a second-round pick by the team out of Florida in 2016, has batted .277 with 33 homers and 111 RBIs across two levels in 2018. Though he showed plenty of power with a .548 slugging percentage in Triple-A, his .241 average could use some improvement. Ultimately, thanks to his big-time power, he appears to be a more promising prospect than former first-round pick Dominic Smith.
