Pete Alonso Sets NL Rookie HR Record

Sunday August 18th 2019: In the Mets big 11-5 win at Kansas City, Pete Alonso went into the record books. His incredible Rookie season is now highlighted by setting the NL HR record for Rookies with 40 HRs. The Amazing Alonso went 2-4 with two runs batted in his 95th RBI of the year. He is now just one HR shy of tying the Mets HR record of 41 HRs in a season held by Todd Hundley & Carlos Beltran.

A look back on Pete Alonso's 40 HRs in 2019:

On April 1st 2019, in south Florida, in the Mets fourth game of the season, Pete Alonso hit his first career HR, a three run shot off the Marlins, Drew Steckenrider. The Mets went on to a 7-3 win that night as a new era for a Mets slugger began. 

After the game Alonso squeezed into a clubhouse cart & his team mates doused him with everything they could find. "A couple of eggs," Alonso said. "Barbecue sauce. Mayonnaise. Beer. Shaving cream. Maybe ketchup and mustard. Maybe relish."

On April 6th at Citi Field, he hit HR #2, a 427 foot shot, off the Nats, Justin Miller in a 6-5 Mets win. It was his first HR at home in New York. The next day he hit another HR, this one off the Nats Matt Grace in a 12-9 loss.

On April 9th, Alonso had his first multi HR game, hitting two more at Citi Field in a 14-8 loss to the Minnesota Twins. The HRs came off Twins hurlers, Adalberto Mejia & Chase De Jong. In his first ten career games, he had 5 HRs 15 RBIs & was batting .385. Quite a start for the Rookie.

On April 11th, he hit a massive 454 foot HR, off the Braves Johnny Venters in a 6-3 Mets win. Eight days later, Alonso's 7th HR came off Ryan Helsley of the St. Louis Cardinals in a 5-4 Mets win.

Two after that, he was suppose to sit out a game after getting hit in the hand. But he texted his manager when he found out Dakota Hudson was pitching, saying I hate that guy I played against him in college. Mickey Callaway put him in, he left St. Louis hitting his 8th HR, coming off pitcher Dakota Hudson. Closing out April, Alonso hit his 9th HR, this one came off Milwaukee's Alex Claudio, in a 8-6 loss at Citi Field.

Alonso became the first player in MLB history (since 1900) to have at least 11 extra-base hits in his first 10 career games. No other player ever had more than nine. His nine HRs led all MLB Rookies & are tied with four Mets players for most HRs before May 1st.

He also tied Met records for most HRs & RBIs in a single month. That month he won the Rookie of the Month Award.

MAY:
On May 4th, as the Mets went to Milwaukee, Alonso blasted his 10th HR of the year, it was an opposite field shot off Junior Guerra in a 4-3 Mets loss.

On May 7th, the Mets went to beautiful San Diego, where Alonso hit a game winning top of the 9th inning HR, breaking a 5-5 tie. It was his 11th of the year, coming off pitcher Adam Warren in the 7-6 Mets win. In the game he had three hits & the first of his career high four RBI games.


On May 11th, he helped the Mets in a 4-1 Citi Field win over the Marlins with a solo shot off Sandy Alcantara.

On May 17th, as the Mets were in South Florida, getting swept by the lowly Marlins, Alonso had his second multi HR game. It came in the 8-6 loss against pitchers; Trevor Richards & Nick Anderson, both solo shots.

On May 20th, the Mets were on a rare 2019 four game win streak up to that point, sweeping the Washington Nats at Citi Field. His 15th HR came off Patrick Corbin, a solo shot. The next day he hit another dramatic, game saver. With one out in the home 8th down 5-4, Alonso homered off Tanner Rainey to tie the game. Amed Rosario's walk off HR won it in the bottom of the 9th.

On May 28th in a 9-8 loss to the Tigers at home, Alonso homered off  Zac Reininger, another solo shot #17 of the year.

On May 29th, at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, Alonso had his third multi HR game.

 He hit two HRs off Walker Buehler, both two run shots in the 9-8 loss. He had three hits in the game driving in four runs, bringing his total to 19 HRs & 43 RBIs.

That HR tied him with Mark McGwire for most HRs by a Rookie before June 1st. 

JUNE: In a June 4th loss to the Giants, he hit his 20th HR of the year, this time off pitcher Madison Bumgarner. The next time up Bumgarner hit him with a pitch.

Later that week, on June 8th, Alonso hit #21 off Jake McGee of the Rockies. It put New York ahead for good in the home 7th inning in the 5-3 win.

In the subway series, June 11th double header, Alonso hit a 1st inning three run HR off James Paxton in the Bronx, as the Mets went on to a 10-4 win, splitting the twin bill.

Four days later, he hit #23 off the Cards Michael Wacha, in a wild 9-8 Met win over St. Louis. This one was measured at 458 feet, the longest by a Met so far in 2019.

Three days later in Atlanta, Alonso had a four hit day & hit his 24th HR, coming off Julio Teheran in a 10-2 win. The Mets were in a 4 of 5 losing streak.

As the team moved on to Wrigley Field, Alonso hit HRs in three of the four games. In the first game he homered off Tyler Chatwood for #25. 

His next two HRs were both mile stones, in the youngsters career. He hit #26 setting the record for most HRs by a rookie before the All Star break. The previous record was held by the Dodgers Cody Bellinger in 2017. That HR was off the Cubs Jose Quintana.

His HR #27 made Mets history, being the most HRs ever hit by a Mets Rookie in an entire season. Darryl Strawberry had 26 HRs in 1983. This milestone HR came off Cole Hamels. The Mets split the series in the Friendly Confines. 

Alonso closed out June with #28 off the Braves, Mike Soroka. Alonso ended the month of June with 28 HRs 64 RBIs & batting .278.

JULY:
As the Phillies rolled into town in early June, Alonso hit two more HRs in the three game set. The first was off Vince Velasquez & then two days later #30 came off Aaron Nola. It was just the second time in Mets history that a Met batter had 30 HRs before the All Star break. Dave Kingman first did it in 1976.

From there Pete Alonso had the honor of being named to the NL All Star team & compete in the HR Derby, in Cleveland. He had his cousin pitch to him in the derby and went on to hit 57 overall HRs.

He didn't hit the most, but hit them when they counted. He is the first Met to win the title outright. Darryl Strawberry tied with Wally Joyner back in 1986. He was also just the second rookie to win a derby.

Quotes- Pete Alonso: “It's survive and advance, You've got to go in with kind of a killer instinct. It doesn't matter how many you hit; you just need to have one more than the guy you're facing.”

He won a million dollars in the derby & donated 5% to The Wounded Warrior Project & 5% to Tunnel To Towers Foundation.

“I respect anyone who puts their life on the line every single day, going to work knowing that they may have to make the ultimate sacrifices,” Alonso said. “There are people that are making sacrifices every single day abroad keeping us free and then there are people at home keeping us safe.”

 A week later, on July 17th, he hit #31 off Matt Magill of the Twins in a Mets 14-4 blow out win. This mammoth shot was measured at 474 feet & reportedly broke a statcast record.

Quotes- Pete Alonso: "It's not every day you kind of connect like that, so that felt good. That felt really, really good." 

The next series in San Francisco he hit HRs in two of the three games. #32 came off Williams Jerez & went past a flock of seagulls in the left field seats. #33 came off Derek Holland, in a pinch hitting role off the bench.

After the HR derby he began to slump & everyone blamed the Derby. Mets broadcaster, Keith Hernandez pointed out every Rookie goes through a slump. By now the Mets were all hitting, scoring runs & going on a seven game win streak, ten of eleven.

On July 26th, he hit #34 in Pittsburgh, off pitcher Dario Agrazal, a solo shot in the 6-3 Mets win. Nine days later in the longest streak where he hadn't hit a HR, he contributed to a big Mets inning. 

AUGUST:

On August 5th, the Mets were down by two runs in the second game of a double header with the Marlins at Citi Field.

The Mets blasted three HRs in the inning, JD Davis, Michael Conforto & then Alonso hit his #35 of the season. It came off Jeff Brigham, losing pitcher, as the Mets went on to the twin bill sweep & their 10th win in 11 games.

After the game in the on field interview, he addressed the fans with LFGM!!

Alonso went on a roll homering in four straight games, as the Mets went on another eight game win streak, right up in the front of the wild card race. 

For Alonso #36 came on the next night on August 6th, as the Mets won their fifth straight, 11 of 12. His shot similar to #35 down the left field line, off pitcher Hector Noesi.

On August 7th he wasted no time, homering in the 1st inning, a two run shot off Jordan Yamamoto. On Friday August 9th, he electrified the Citi Field crowd with his 38th HR of the year, coming in the 4th inning off Steven Strasburg, in a big win over the Washington Nats. Michael Conforto followed with a back to back shot.

After what seemed like four long days not hitting a HR, Alonso homered tying the NL record set by the Dodgers Cody Bellinger in 2017. In his big game, Alonso drove in a career high six runs. His HR was a 1st inning three run shot off Atlanta's Julio Teheran. 

Alonso had a two run single in the 5th & topped off his big night with an RBI single in the 7th, as the Mets salvaged the final game of the three game series against the division leading Braves.

Pete Alonso is now in the record book with most HRs by a National League Rookie.