Before with the Mets, the Phillies were among the teams that checked in on the first basemans free agent market, writes. Rather than make the jump elsewhere in the NL East, Alonso returned to Queens on a two-year, $54MM deal that allows Alonso to opt out after the 2025 season. This is the first time the Phils interest in Alonso has been made public, though dropped some hints when he was discu sing his willingne s to eventually move back to his old right field position. When Pete was on the block still, I kind of sat there and was like, Hey, why not? , Harper said. When we talked about it, I kind of just Monte Morris Jersey reiterated to (the Phillies) and Scott (Boras) that Im willing to move out there if its going to help us. I love playing first base. Its been great. But if its going to help us win, Id go back out there [to the outfield] . Despite Harpers stance, there isnt any indication that the Phillies made any serious push towards Alonso, or that their interest might have been anything more than due diligence. As a big-market, free-spending team, the Phils have the relative freedom to explore signing just about any available free agent, and president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski is no stranger to splashy acquisitions. If anything, it might have been more unusual if Philadelphia didnt at least consider Alonso, particularly (as Harper noted) once February rolled around and Alonso remained unsigned. Alonsos hopes at landing a lucrative long-term contract didnt work out, leaving Alonso and agent Scott Boras (who also represents Harper) pivoting to shorter-term deals that included an opt-out clause. The Blue Jays Alonso a three-year deal worth roughly $80-$85MM, but the slugger instead took the shorter contract from New York with the higher average annual value. Because Alonso ultimately preferred to remain in Queens anyway, its safe to gue s that he probably wouldnt have jumped to a division rival if the Phillies had offered the same contract structure as the Mets, plus a few extra dollars. Hypothetically, if Alonso had gone to Philadelphia, Harper wouldve moved into right field, making for a crowded situation in the Fightins outfield. With locked in as the everyday DH, Alonso at first base, and Harper getting everyday at-bats in right field, and new signing wouldve been squeezed into a platoon in left field. Signing Alonso even at that relative bargain price also wouldnt have exactly been a bargain in luxury tax terms. The Phillies are already projected (via ) for a tax number of roughly $307.5MM in 2025, which is over the maximum penalty tier of $301MM. The Phillies have paid the tax in each of the last three seasons, so the repeater penalty on top of the penalty for exceeding the $301MM threshold wouldve cost Philadelphia a 110% surcharge for every dollar spent above the $301MM total. The number of big contracts on the Phillies books could explain why the club had a relatively quiet winter, as the Phillies made a few mid-tier signings (Kepler, , ) and swung one prominent trade to acquire from the Marlins. Still, after their playoff disappointment in 2024, the Phils were expected by some to perhaps be more aggre sive in making one more headling-grabbing move as something of a final touch to put the roster over the top. Checking in with Alonso now, however, mightve been a move to really lay groundwork for next winter, a suming he triggers his opt-out clause. While the Phillies have designs on signing Schwarber , his departure would open up a bit more flexibility on the roster and on the payroll, perhaps opening the door for Philadelphia to pursue Alonso or another big bat. Alonso told Heyman that he is happy to back with the Mets, and he has no regrets about how his free agency developed. He also noted that bigger-picture concerns overshadowed any worries he had about the lingering nature of his free agent stint, as Alonso spent much of his winter overseeing the repair of his home in Tampa. Hurricane Helene wiped out our house. It just puts things in perspective , Alonso said. Nothing really seemed that big of a deal after losing our house. Its like, what else? OK, we have to wait a few extra few weeks. OK, so what? Vlatko CanCar Jersey