The Baltimore Orioles made a surprising move on Wednesday, signing Pete Alonso to a huge $155 million contract over the next five seasons.
After coming up short on Kyle Schwarber, with an identical five-year contract worth $150 million, the Orioles pivoted to Alonso, swiping him from the New York Mets and the Boston Red Sox.
ESPN analyst David Schoenfield gave the Orioles a "B" grade for this contract. While not an "A" like the Philadelphia Phillies got for their Schwarber deal, it's a solid grade for the big move of the offseason for Baltimore.
Orioles receive 'B' grade for Pete Alonso contract
"He'll provide a jolt to a lineup that needed it." Schoenfield writes. "The $31 million AAV, combined with Alonso's age and lack of all-around game, limits the grade here, but he'll help the Orioles, at least until the.220, 25-homer seasons pop up at the end of this deal.
Schoenfield acknowledges that this is a move that will help the lineup immensely in the short term, but his long-term concerns are the reason why the Orioles got a "B" grade for Alonso compared to the Phillies' "A" grade for Schwarber.
Baltimore landing Alonso is the exact kind of move that should bolster a lineup that could be postseason contenders into serious World Series contenders.
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He's not the best hitter in baseball, but a.272 hitter with 38 home runs and 126 RBIs in 2025 is more than enough to provide a jolt into the lineup.
His.871 OPS was 11th in Major League Baseball and would be the perfect complement to the rest of the lineup in Baltimore.
Alonso is 31 years old and will make $31 million per season for the next five years, so there is some long-term concern. Those concerns have led Schoenfield to hand out a "B" grade to the Orioles for this blockbuster signing.
While Alonso is more than capable of making this contract worth it, the risk won't come to a head until a few years down the road. For now, this is an incredible move for the Orioles, and one that fans should be ecstatic about.
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