Ken Rosenthal Reacts to Alonso Joining the Orioles & the Mets Curious Offseason

You know what’s funny? I just thought of this. The most talked about team is a team that actually hasn’t done anything. And it’s the Mets. Yeah, it’s true. And they’ve done Devin Williams, right before this. He was here, by the way. But well, yeah, I saw him last night, but before this, not during this stretch. No, you’re right. And certainly the Mets are going to be the talking point of the sport right now. I just got done writing about them. And all this is well and good. You want to lose these guys, okay? But you have to have answers. And I’m not necessarily seeing what those answers are going to be. Now, I’m sure David Sterns has some kind of plan. They’re not talking much about what they’re going to do. That’s fine. But they need two outfielders. They need starting pitching and they don’t want to play long-term on the big time starting pitchers who are available in free agency, which I understand. Those guys have questions. And now they have a closer Devin Williams who will not have a safety net in Edwin Diaz. So they’re going to need to be busy. I’m sure they know that. They obviously know that. But the way I wrote the column was if you’re a Mets fan right now, the irrational side is winning. Is MDS thing true about not calling him about Devin Williams and then therefore he got he got his feelings hurt? Which I I totally understand because he’s been there. He’s a star. He he is a star of the new when he they play the trumpets he’s the man coming out of there and he’s done in the biggest stages. So is that a true thing that led to him then going to the Dodgers? I don’t know that that alone was but I mean it adds up as a player you want to be respectful. That’s where I’m going. AJ especially a guy that has been there done that. That was one element. Their offers I’m sure were another element. Jeremy Hefner leaving Edwin Diaz had a good relationship with him. All of that adds up as you said and players, they want a certain respect shown to them, especially someone like Diaz who meant so much to the franchise. From what I’ve heard, and it’s not just with the failure to call him and inform him of Deon Williams, it was overall from what I’ve heard, that respect he didn’t feel was shown to them. By the way, has anyone done a proof of life on Mendy? Carlos Mendoza, I saw him yesterday, but today now All Lonzo’s gone. Has anyone Has anyone seen or heard from Mendy? Because he’s gonna have to put all this. I mean, he has David Sterns, but if they don’t do what they need to do, it all falls on him, not David Sterns. And you know what, guys? It’s going to be a different kind of team. Obviously, they also made the Simeon move. They acquired a 36-year-old second baseman who was in offensive decline. And I know what they’re saying about run prevention and Pete Alonzo is not the best defensive first baseman. I don’t think the Orioles cared all that much about it because they see him as a game changer in their lineup and he is for them. This is a huge move for Baltimore and the Mets just didn’t see it that way. I understand no play player is perfect, but man, Pete Alonzo brought an awful lot and like NMO, like Diaz, he proved he could play in the New York pressure cooker. Not a small thing. Marcus Simeon hasn’t done that. Devin Williams has done it to an extent, but he had mixed results this year. So, luck to them. They’re going to have a lot to do, and it’s not going to be an easy puzzle to put back together. What about the puzzle that the Orioles are trying to put back together? Lineup looking nice now. They still have a lot of work to do on the pitching side. They will be active on starting pitching. I reported yesterday with Will Salmon that they’ve been talking to the Marlins about Edward Cabrera. They’re also talking about other trades. There have been published reports linking them to Mackenzie Gore and they are also involved in Ranger Suarez and at the top of the free agent market Valdez as well. So this is not it for them, but the breadth of what they have done. so far is somewhat astonishing. Starts with Leodyver, Andrew Kitridge, they trade for him, then they exercise his option. Ryan Helley, they trade for Taylor Ward and now Pete Alonso. That’s a team that is doing things. That is a team that finished last last season and said not good enough. And it’s also an ownership much different than Steve Cohen of course, but an ownership that while operating in a mid-market is stepping up and saying, “It’s time. Let’s go. We got to get going here.” And they are impressively putting a team together. I love it. Yeah. We we bang on them all the time. Finally, go get him. Go get him. Absolutely. And here we go. And you know what, too? There’s always a question with a team like that. Cincinnati’s facing this, Pittsburgh’s facing this. Can they actually get the guy? And the Orioles, of course, they bid the same amount for Schwarber that the Phillies did, but the Phillies were given the right to match, it seems, and just did that. But here are the Orioles and they were in there against the Red Sox. They were in there against Well, I guess the Mets didn’t really bid, but they won. And that’s what you have to do in free agency to get the player. You have to win. We all know it always sounds great the first day, and who knows how this will work out, but Pete Alonzo’s 31. It’s not going to stop hitting anytime soon in my estimation. So, it’s a huge day for the Orioles. Huge day for kind of continuing the revival in that city of baseball which took a little bit of a step back last year. Mhm. Nothing has actually happened with the trade market unless No, that’s No, that’s what I was going to I was going to say. Who won the winter meetings? Because every year we have offseason winners. Only three moves. I mean, there’s a few other but he knows more of the insider what he thinks is going to happen down the road. Who do you think has maybe set themselves up? Well, the Orioles for sure set themselves up. Well, yes. And AJ, not to cop out, but it’s way too early to pass judgment. And that’s the one thing with the Mets. What they’ve done so far is curious to say the least, but it’s December 10th. It’s not February 10th, and there’s plenty of time. I just don’t see the options being that great. For example, Pete Alonzo is one of the great right-handed hitters in the sport. He hit behind Juan Sto, one of the great left-handed hitters in the sport. Who is going to fill that spot? The two top free agents, Cody Bellinger and Kyle Tucker, are both left-handed. The Mets show no inclination that they’re going to sign either anyway. Who’s the right-handed bat behind Peter Hank Juanoto? I don’t know. Bentos, I guess. Oh, Bentos. I mean, not ideal. Those guys should be 67 in the lineup, you know. Could be a trade. Could be a trade. But again, one of the reasons the Orioles jumped on Taylor Ward was the lack of right-handed hitting outfielders. Maybe they signed Harrison Bader back, the Mets. I don’t know. But he’s not a protection guy. And good luck trading for a right-handed slugger. Simeon, not that guy anymore. Okay. Yeah, sub 700 ops the last two years. Hey, we talked about this 20 minutes ago. I was reading some parts from your notes column. The Braves, remember the Braves? What are they going to do this off season? I know you wrote a little bit about some some prying into relievers. Yes, they’re on relievers and Robert Suarez is one, but there’s competition for him. And this the other thing with the Mets, by the way, they face competition for all these players. Most of the teams are trying. So, that’s a problem in addition to everything else. But the Braves, they want another reliever. They want a starter, and they want to, if possible, continue upgrading at shortstop so they could play Dubon all over the field. Now, Hashan Kim, we haven’t heard much about him. He’s still out there. The Braves, of course, acquired him for the last stretch of the season to get to know him. He becomes a free agent, of course, which is his right and which I think was their expectation. But he’s a guy that if his market doesn’t develop and there are teams that could use him besides the Atlanta Braves, obviously they would love him to come back. Mhm. Okay. By the way, you know, you said 67, right? 67. There you go. Perfect. Hey, we got it from Ken. There you go. I’m with the cool kids. I know. The chat is like Ken said 67, which is great. But one of our friends, one of our colleagues, a guy you worked with much more than me, won the Frick Award. It was a Frick. It was the Frick Award, right? for award. Joe Buck, one of the best dudes I know. People bash him. He’s one of the best dudes I know in the world. Always gets back to you. We’ll do whatever. Give you anything you want. One of the greatest guys in the world. One of the best sports announcers. Baseball, football, any sport he can do. One of my favorite people I’ve ever met. I want your thoughts on him getting into the Hall of Fame. I was thrilled to see this. And I worked with him, I believe, maybe 15 years at Fox. And I know what people say. Oh, he’s this. He’s that. The guy called 24 World Series. He didn’t call 24 World Series because he sucks. Okay. He did because he is the best at his craft. And I was privileged to be part of that team that he he was leading obviously as far as the broadcast. And AJ, I’ll tell you this one story because it it showed me how gifted he was. And it was such a subtle thing that I’m sure no one noticed. 2009 ALCS I believe the Yankees and Angels are playing. The Yankees are kind of putting the series away a little bit and Tim McCarver and I get this conversation on air looking ahead to the next series. Joe pulls it back to the game in a way that was so masterful, so easy, and yet the viewer or the listener would not have even known what had happened. and he has an amazing gift. Great on the big moments, great in every aspect of broadcasting. He is, I believe, now in both the baseball and football hall of fames. Again, that guy who is that two Hall of Fames, I don’t think he sucks. No, I love it. He’s pretty darn good. Yeah, he’s one of the alltime greats. He’s a legend and he makes every event feel bigger. That’s right. And that’s why ESPN wanted him because he elevated them. And does this mean he’s coming back and doing a baseball again, though? I He sure doesn’t sound like he really wants to do that. I don’t know. Big events. ESPN just got their new deal. Yeah, I know. I know. They got some special games here and there. I I would think he might do it, but he’s doing pretty well. Yeah, he’s doing all right. He’s the best. It’s tough to It’s tough to do multiple sports. A lot of guys do it, but it is tough. Also, just on a personal level, before I started at Fox on the broadcast in 2006, they had not had a print person be a sideline reporter. And Joe and Tim, they didn’t have to agree to that. They didn’t have to accept that. And yet, not only did both of them do it, and they both have now won Frick Awards, they accepted me. They brought me in. They made me feel part of it. And I’m forever in debt to both those guys. I love both those guys. The same thing you told you you’re talking about Joe and Tim. We were recently at Tim, it was a few years ago, Tim Macarver’s uh celebration of life in St. Louis. I get a call from Bob Costas. Can you come speak at Tim Macver’s celebration of life if you know the family would like you to speak? Da da. And I’m like, well, I knew Tim, but I didn’t know Tim like as well as y’all did, but we had a relationship. And I’ll never forget Bob Costa says, hey, you can you speak? And I go, well, where, you know, what am I saying? Just tell stories about Tim D. And I said, ‘Well, who am I speaking between?’ He’s like, ‘Well, between me and Joe Buck. And I’m like, wait a second here. Bob C is me and then Joe Buck. And then I And you were there and you sat with me and I and I did my whole little thing and told some funny to Macarver. And then the best was Joe followed me and he weaved what I said into what he was saying. And I was like, “Okay, this dude is just the best.” And like made it so good. He was inducted into a third hall of fame, the National Sports Media Association Hall of Fame. I was there for that. And this was in North Carolina. His speech, it was so hilarious. This guy is one of the funniest people I know. And he’s self-deprecating. He’s humble. He knows he take he took all the criticism because of his father. And he’s following his father. It’s nepotism. He attacks it headon. He will tell people, “I’m a nepo baby and I’m proud of it.” And man, I’m sure his dad right now is looking down at his son and saying, “Man, what a in 20 years to the day, don’t forget the 91 Kirby bucket, game six, Cardinals.” That’s my old call. So, do you know that we had a conversation before the game about that? I don’t know if you were in the car with us. So, that was my first ever thing with Fox. And I said, “Joe, you know, it’s 20 year anniversary.” And he knew obviously. And I said, you know, if Cardinals hit a walk-off, you got to do it. He’s like, “Oh, trust me. we’ve I’ve thought about already. Oh, really? And then it h and then David Freeze hit the home run and we’ll see you tomorrow night. And this is how good he was though at like forward thinking about stuff. Yeah. He was just a master is a master. Still can’t say talk about past tense. Yeah. Yes. Yeah. Congratulations. He’s the second youngest Frick winner after Vince Scully. Wow. Wow. I didn’t know that. Well, we’ll get him on. We’ll talk about it. Ken, we’ll talk to you or we’ll hear from you know. Oh, well, I could talk about horns all day, too. Oh, yeah. But he also is going in PBWAA winner, longtime beat writer for the Cleveland Plane dealer since 1983, and he’s seen it all from Municipal Stadium to Jacobs Field to Progressive Field. Now, he’s covered all kinds of teams, good, bad, some ugly. He is beloved among the baseball riders. And when he got in yesterday, we were all just laughing and thrilled. He’s just a fun-loving guy on top of everything else.

FT senior insider Ken Rosenthal joins AJ, Erik, and Scott at the Winter Meetings to break down why the New York Mets have become the most talked about team without doing enough, how losing Pete Alonso and mishandling Edwin Díaz changes everything, and why their current “plan” feels so risky. Ken contrasts the Mets’ approach with the aggressive Baltimore Orioles, who just added Alonso on top of a busy offseason and are still chasing pitching help. He also shares notes on the Atlanta Braves and other contenders, then pivots to Joe Buck’s Hall of Fame honor and why Buck is one of the all-time great voices in Major League Baseball.

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21 comments

  4. Embarrassing muts organization, all that money and didn’t even make the playoffs 😂. You lost a lot of good players but keep defending that Milwaukee bum. Your gm sucks😂

  7. Orioles are pretty simple ….new billionaire owners bought 100 win team, watched them win 91 games. They let their GM double the payroll in 25 and he basically lit their money on fire with bums and won 75 games. Very clearly told their risk averse GM you win 80 games or so you probably won't be back so spend some money on real players. He finally doing it

  8. This will be great for Gunnar. He seems to thrive with in-house competition. I'll bet Gunnar smacks 40 HRs this year. As for the Mets, I'll bet they sign Imai and Murakami.

  9. Why is this nonsense about Diaz not being called about Devin Williams a thing..??? He was a free agent!! No longer on the team. Should I be mad that I didn’t get a phone call??

  11. The moves made by Stearns make little sense to me but the worst thing I am seeing now is that rich little brat Stearns smiling while he is telling us there are good players out there. I knew people like Stearns. Totally unlikable little punks. As for Mendoza, he should have been fired at the end of last year. I watch a lot of Mets games and some of his decisions baffled me. I don't think he knows what he is doing. How about stop hiring and signing former Yankees? Mendoza sat next to that stiff Aaron Boone for years watching poor in game managing and that is where he learned the craft. Why are the Mets insistent on former Yankees?

  12. Not to worry, hear Keith (17) is starting to take ground balls and hitting the batting cage. Especially since his broadcast contract is up and they haven't started negotiating with him…Meanwhile Franco is loosening up the arm for his return as well. 😂😂😂 Sterns is a disaster….

  13. Strangely the Alonso signing reminds me of the Chris Davis signing.
    They should have focused on signing frontline starters like Suarez, Framber, King especially after trading away Grayson.
    Schwarber would have been good for their young team but not Alonso..

  15. I’m a Dodger fan. Very happy we got Diaz. But Diaz is upset the Mets didn’t consult with him on a FA ? Whatever. You are a player. Your job is to play not on roster composition.

  19. Blow it out your ass Ken. For the photographer you tripped over an being unaware ass. Then being a dickbag to the guy. You should’ve gotten a tune up for your douchbaggyness ! And I like you Ken but don’t be a self entitled dick!

  21. I tried to be nice. But my brain 🧠 is Baffled. What is David Stearns plan. If he has some of the prospects playing to start the season. I’m fine with that. But what he is saying is like a scene ripped straight out of The movie Money Ball. Paul Goldsmidt & Jeff McNeil platooning at first base. I’m lost I have no faith in David Stearns or Steve Cohen. I usually look 👀 forward to spring training. So far nothing to look forward to

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