What Pete Alonso had to say about becoming fourth Mets player to collect 200 home runs

NEW YORK — Pete Alonso blasted his way into the Mets history books on Saturday afternoon against the Cardinals at Citi Field.

The Mets first baseman reached out and clubbed an outside sinker from starter Sonny Gray over the wall in right-center field for the 200th home run of his career.

The two-run shot helped Alonso become just the fourth Mets player in history to hit 200 home runs in his career, joining Darryl Strawberry (252), David Wright (242) and Mike Piazza (220).

"It’s a really special moment," Alonso said. "I know we were just trying to get back in the game there, and it felt really nice to connect and inch us a little closer. It was a really good swing, and I felt really good about it when it left the bat."

As the ball sailed into the Mets' bullpen, Cardinals right fielder Lars Nootbaar cut his jog short of the warning track as it sailed well over his head. Alonso's long ball capped a four-run inning for the Mets off Gray as they crawled back within 6-4 in the bottom of the fifth inning. The Mets would go on to fall, 7-4, to the Cardinals at Citi Field.

'You don’t see too many reactions from a right fielder when a right-handed hitter hits the ball the other way like that," Mendoza said. "As soon as he hit it, their right fielder knew it was gone.

"Obviously, it’s special for a special guy. It’s one of those where if you talk to him, wishes we got the W. At the end of the day, it’s a huge accomplishment."

It was Alonso's eighth home run of the season — second-most in the National League behind the Braves' Marcell Ozuna (9).

With the milestone coming in his 710th game, Alonso is the fourth-fastest player in major league history to achieve the feat. According to Elias, only Ryan Howard (658 days), Aaron Judge (671) and Ralph Kiner (706) have reached the milestone quicker.

"That’s really kind of mind-boggling," Alonso said. "I mean, that’s really cool. I just want ot keep continuing to put good at-bats together and help my team win.

Mendoza added: "Everyone knows who Pete Alonso is and the type of player and type of hitter – the power. You mentioned some of those names, that’s a pretty special group. That’s who he is – a special player, special hitter. I’m excited to have him on our team."

Alonso also holds Mets single-season records for home runs (53) and RBI (131) in a season. The former was achieved as a rookie in 2019, while the latter came during the Mets' 101-win season in 2022. He has had three seasons with at least 40 home runs and 100 RBI in his first five seasons.

Alonso is set to become an unrestricted free agent after the 2024 season but he is also sailing up the Mets' franchise RBI ranks. With 512 RBI, he is 10th all-time in Mets history and within nine of matching Cleon Jones and Jose Reyes for eighth place.

"It’s a combination of hard work and great, great coaching and going out there and executing in the game when the lights come on," Alonso said of his consistent power performances. "I’ve been really fortunate to have some great coaches. I’ve been fortunate enough to have some great teammates and great people in my life."

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NY Mets: Pete Alonso becomes team's fourth player to hit 200 home runs