Mets making playoffs

in play last year, Alonso split his time between first base and DH to make room for Dominic Smith’s red-hot bat in the lineup.

“I feel like I’m eating a poop sandwich, but this time is going to pass,” Alonso said of his early-season struggles. “But then eventually it did and the rest of the season I finished strong.”

Nothing about the 2020 season was normal for Alonso, and he is refusing to let the bizarreness of that year define who he is as a player.

“I learned to give myself a little bit of grace,” he said. “That’s the mental part of the offseason where I feel like I’ve matured, because baseball is such a game of failure… I’m really happy that last year happened the way it did because I feel like I’m very prepared for this year. Last year exposed a lot of things I needed to get better at. I’m ready to go. I’m ready to have fun and go out there and play.”

Now that Alonso has turned the page, he wants to go through his at-bats in spring training with a cool, collective, and methodical game plan. He’s focused on not missing mistakes from pitchers. He wants to “elevate” his game in all aspects including his speed on the basepaths -- even though he admits he’ll never be as fast as Francisco Lindor or Brandon Nimmo. ut most of all, Alonso wants to experience his first postseason.

“The attention to details and going out and competing our asses off and going out there and wanting to win and doing anything possible for a win, I think for us, that’s the goal,” Alonso said. “I can’t wait for that. It’s going to be special and it’s going to be fun. I hope all five boroughs turn into a massive block party when we do it.”

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