Mets owner Steve Cohen: Pete Alonso negotiations 'exhausting' - ESPN

NEW YORK — The New York Mets held their first winter event for fans in five years at Citi Field on Saturday, and there was one notable absence. Pete Alonso wasn't in attendance because, for the first time since the 2016 draft, he isn't a member of the Mets' organization.

The homegrown star first baseman remains a free agent and, though a reunion remains possible, he might have played his last game as a Met.

Owner Steve Cohen bluntly said as much Saturday after taking the stage for a fireside chat with fans to chants of «We want Pete!»

«Personally, this has been an exhausting conversation and negotiation,» Cohen explained. «I mean, [Juan Soto's negotiation] was tough. This is worse. A lot of it is, we've made a significant offer. I don't like the structures that are being presented back to us. I think it's highly asymmetric against us and I feel strongly about it.»

Alonso, along with third baseman Alex Bregman, is one of the two best position players left on the free agent market. The first baseman, who is represented by Scott Boras, originally sought a long-term deal, but he is open to returning to the Mets on a three-year contract and the Mets have been open to such a deal, according to a source. The obstacle has been money.

«I will never say no,» Cohen said. «There's always the possibility. But the reality is we're moving forward and we continue to bring in players. As we continue to bring in players, the reality is it becomes harder to fit Pete into what is a very expensive group of players that we already have and that's where we are.

»I'm being brutally honest. I don't like the negotiations. I don't like what's being presented to us. Maybe that changes. I'll always stay flexible. But if it stays this way, I think