Polar Bear likely to be free agent

PORT ST. LUCIE — Pete Alonso indicated upon arriving to camp that he was open to negotiating a new deal with the Mets in spring training or even during the season.

But Mets owner Steve Cohen has other ideas about how to proceed with the slugging first baseman.

“We haven’t had any discussions and I think at this point as far as for Pete it’s best for him to go have a great year and not be distracted,” Cohen said Sunday. “I think it’s best for the ballclub. We know how to do this. We did it with Edwin [Diaz], we did it with Brandon [Nimmo] after the season. We’ll figure it out when we get there.”

Nimmo reached free agency and received from the Mets an eightyear contract worth $162 million. Diaz got a five-year contract worth $102 million.

Alonso is receiving $20.5 million this season in his final arbitrationeligible year.

➤ With several teams receiving reduced TV revenue as regional sports networks deal with the realities of cord cutting, Cohen was asked if there was any concern about the Mets’ relationship with SNY.

“I don’t see any issues in the next couple of years,” Cohen said. “We have a contract. What I will say is the whole TV ecosystem is changing clearly right in front of our eyes and I think probably having a major effect on why teams are pulling back on spending. I think we’re in a better position, but ultimately all teams are going to have to deal with that problem.”

➤ Sean Reid-Foley has dealt with “arm fatigue” near his biceps, according to manager Carlos Mendoza, and was shut down from throwing for a short stretch but has resumed playing catch. The expectation is he will begin ramping up on Tuesday and return to game action by the weekend. The right-hander is a consideration for a spot in the Mets bullpen.

“He’s been getting a lot of action,” Mendoza said. “I’m glad he said something.”

➤ Jeff McNeil took at-bats on the minor league side, according to Mendoza, and is scheduled for his Grapefruit League debut on Tuesday. The second baseman was sidetracked by biceps discomfort earlier in camp.