Pete Alonso didn’t climb up the Mets’ home run leaderboard on talent alone.
Preceding all of Alonso’s record-setting homers and tape-measure blasts are hours of preparation behind the scenes, which is what manager Carlos Mendoza says stands out most about the Mets’ All-Star first baseman.
“He’s watching film 24/7,” Mendoza said. “We could be on a flight and you walk by his seat, and he’s got his iPad, his notebook, and he’s watching the whole pitching staff from the team that we’re about to face.
“That says a lot. It could be after an 0-for-4 game or a tough loss, and he’s on the plane and it’s the same routine.”
Mendoza’s comments came on Tuesday afternoon, less than 24 hours after Alonso hit the 251st home run of his career to move within one of Darryl Strawberry’s franchise record.
Alonso already owned many of the Mets’ other home run milestones, including the single-season record of 53, which he set in 2019. He is the only player in franchise history with multiple seasons of at least 40 homers, a feat he’s achieved three times.
“Sometimes, we’ve got to tell him to back off a little bit, because he’s taking 1,000 swings in the cages,” said Mendoza, who is in his second season as the Mets’ manager.
“He’s hitting early. It’s pretty impressive to see a guy of that caliber continue to put so much [into it]. Obviously, there are expectations, but it says a lot for the other guys, too, when you’ve got a guy performing the way that he is, and look at him.”
Originally the Mets’ 2016 second-round pick, Alonso is in his seventh MLB season.
He passed David Wright (242) on the Mets’ all-time home run list in June and struck the 250th home run of his career on Saturday.
“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,” Alonso, 30, said after Saturday’s game.
“I’m just focused on wins and what I can help this team do to win in each game,” he said. “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.”
Mendoza backed up that assessment, saying Alonso has remained the “same guy.”
“Maybe [it’s] in the back of his mind, but he’s not showing anything,” Mendoza said. “He’s not talking about it. It’s all about winning for him. ‘What can I do today to help the team win a baseball game?’ He’s about his preparation and taking care of today. But I haven’t seen anything. Being around him, talking to him, that hasn’t even come up.”
MULLING MULLINS
Lefty-swinging Cedric Mullins was not in the Mets’ lineup on Tuesday night with left-hander Logan Allen starting for the Cleveland Guardians.
But that doesn’t mean Mullins is in a platoon with righty-hitting Tyrone Taylor, who got the start Tuesday in center field.
“Cedric will play against lefties, too,” Mendoza said.
“Looking at this guy’s splits and pitch shape and all that, I thought today was a good day for [Taylor].”
The Mets acquired Mullins, a 2021 All-Star, from the Baltimore Orioles before last week’s trade deadline. He has actually performed far better against left-handers this season, posting an .847, compared to .678 against righties.
But Mendoza wants to continue to find opportunities for Taylor, too. Allen has pitched to fairly even splits this season but is historically tougher on left-handed batters.
Mendoza included three lefty hitters in Tuesday’s lineup: Juan Soto, Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil.
Mullins entered Tuesday with one hit in 15 at-bats with the Mets.
ON THE FARM
Brandon Sproat continues to turn heads at Triple-A Syracuse, going 2-0 with an 0.67 ERA over five starts in July.
Same goes for Nolan McLean, who entered Tuesday’s game with a 3.01 ERA over 14 appearances, including 11 starts, at Triple-A.
But the Mets aren’t quite ready to promote the 24-year-old right-handers, both of whom rank within the organization’s top five prospects, according to MLB Pipeline.
“It’s always a combination of when, developmentally, those guys are ready, and also when there’s the need and how to fit it on the roster,” president of baseball operations David Stearns said this week.
“We may get to the point where we decide that it’s the best thing to do to bring one or both of them here, but we’re not at that point quite yet.”
Entering Tuesday, the Mets’ starting rotation had pitched to a 4.51 ERA and was averaging 4.7 innings per start since the beginning of July.
Another prized pitching prospect, Jonah Tong, delivered his latest strong outing on Tuesday afternoon, hurling five scoreless innings with eight strikeouts against the Yankees’ Double-A affiliate, Somerset.
Tong, 22, is 8-4 with a 1.58 ERA in 19 starts with Double-A Binghamton.
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