The departure of Pete Alonso left a crater in the middle of the New York Mets lineup that no single player could realistically fill, but David Stearns isn’t trying to replace the “Polar Bear” with one swing.

Instead, the front office executed a calculated pivot on Saturday afternoon, signing veteran switch-hitter Jorge Polanco to a two-year, $40 million contract. It is a significant commitment to a 30-year-old who just bet on himself by declining a meager $6 million option with the Seattle Mariners, and frankly, he cashed in because his bat is exactly what this roster needs.

Polanco is coming off a renaissance campaign in 2025 that reminded everyone why he was once an All-Star, slashing .265/.326/.495 over 138 games in the Pacific Northwest. He launched 26 home runs and drove in 78 RBIs,

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