The Orioles have made one of the biggest offseason moves in a long time—they’ve signed first baseman Pete Alonso to a five-year, $155 million deal, a contract that marks the largest free-agent signing by average annual value in Orioles history.
Alonso will arrive in Baltimore fresh off a resurgent 2025 campaign with the New York Mets in which he slashed .272/.347/.524 with 38 home runs, 126 RBI, and an .871 OPS, the best mark since his rookie season.
Throughout his entire career, Alonso has shown elite power. Just take a look at his Statcast page and you’re going to see nothing but red, last year posting an 18.9% barrel rate (good for 98th percentile in the league), a 54.4% hard-hit rate (96th percentile), and a 93.5 MPH average exit velocity (97th percentile).
This sort of right-handed pop, alongside recent acquisition Taylor Ward who hit 36 home runs last year with a 13.7% barrel rate (84th percentile), helps boost the Orioles lineup into something really special, especially considering the fact that moving the left field wall back in before last season turned Camden Yards into a much more right-handed-power-friendly ballpark.
With the Alonso signing alongside the signing of closer Ryan Helsley and the trade for Ward, the Orioles’ front office has signaled they’re not planning on treading water in 2026—they’re planning to compete (perhaps…it’s liftoff from here?).
Now, Alonso’s presence in the lineup does complicate the path to regular playing time for a few existing first-base or DH candidates—namely Ryan Mountcastle and Coby Mayo, who at this point, are likely going to be trade bait for a quality starting pitcher.
But from a broader perspective, the signing of Alonso means the Orioles now have one of the most formidable offenses in baseball, especially if their young core of Gunnar Henderson, Adley Rutschman, Colton Cowser, Samuel Basallo, and Jordan Westburg all perform.
However, that’s not to say Alonso’s signing doesn’t carry any risk. Alonso is 31 years old with limited defensive value and is virtually a non-factor on the basepaths (though the latter doesn’t really matter all that much to me, personally). His bat has been constant, as has his ability to stay healthy, but over the course of a five-year deal, wear and tear can catch up.
But the upside of Pete Alonso at his best is very much worth it, and assuming he continues to be a guy who can play upwards of 150 games a year, as he was with the Mets, this deal could be huge.
Perhaps most importantly though, this deal signals a philosophical shift for the Orioles. In the past, this has been a club built largely through internal development and short-term deals, but now, this signing signals the team is willing to attach major financial weight to a high-profile free agent.
And it seems the Orioles aren’t done either, as there have been multiple reports the Orioles are still chasing a front-line starter or other further pitching reinforcements.
Bringing in Alonso is a bet for the Orioles—that their young core will take the next step and that their lineup can translate potential into production. It’s also a signal that this team is aiming at contention and not an eternal rebuild.
If Alonso remains healthy and keeps doing what he’s been doing, this signing could go down as one of the best moves of the winter, and potentially even in Orioles history.
Ben Palmer has lived in Maryland his whole life and currently spends his days working as a health care journalist. He also previously wrote for and was a site expert for the FanSided blog The Baltimore Wire and currently works as managing editor at Pitcher List where he writes about fantasy baseball.