Pete Alonso: Mets should pay Francisco Lindor $400 million

Pay him $400 million.

That was Pete Alonso’s recommendation Tuesday when asked how much Francisco Lindor is worth to the Mets. This came after owner Steve Cohen tapped out a few tweets earlier in the day suggesting the team was standing firm on its offer of 10 years, $325 million. Lindor, according to a source, is seeking 12 years and $385 million, which apparently is too low in Alonso’s view.

"Not only is he a superstar on the field, he pays attention, he works hard, he cares about his teammates," Alonso said after the Mets’ workout Tuesday at Nationals Park. "And he not only does he have the quantifiable numbers of a superstar, he has the X factor -- what he brings to a clubhouse is tremendous and can't be measured, along with his superstar talent.

"I hope they pay him $400 million and he's worth every penny of what he decides. That's his personal decision, but I think that he's a superstar. I’ve always known he was an unbelievable player. But the amount of intangibles that the man has is special. Also, he's young, and what he can bring to a club for a very, very long time, I can't even imagine what the potential he could be to help out for the future. So yeah, pay him $400 million. Absolutely."

With Lindor’s self-imposed Opening Day deadline clock ticking down inside 48 hours, Cohen spent a few of those precious minutes Tuesday posting some tweets about the current state of the negotiations.

"Lindor is a heckuva player and a great guy," Cohen posted early that afternoon. "I hope he decides to sign."

Since the Mets already know his asking price, Cohen’s stance didn’t make him sound like an owner prepared to meet that figure. As of Tuesday evening, the Mets still were sitting on their offer of 10 years, $325 million, a threshold that one source described as the team’s "last, best" proposal.

There remains time for that to change, however. The Nationals’ Max Scherzer isn’t scheduled to throw the first pitch of Opening Night until Thursday at 7:09 p.m. Beyond that, with a forecast of below-freezing temps, maybe the Mets won’t actually play the season’s first game until the following afternoon in frigid D.C.

That leaves the potential for some additional wrangling over the extension figures, but it’s unclear if Cohen has reached his limit. When an SNY report Tuesday suggested the two sides were "brainstorming" for a creative compromise, Cohen took to Twitter again in response, shooting down the idea.

"I don’t see a lot of brainstorming going on over here," Cohen posted.

While Cohen does like to have fun with fans on Twitter, he’s used the social-media platform to make serious announcements as well, such as the firing of former GM Jared Porter for a history of aggressive, unsolicited texts to a female reporter. In the case of the Lindor negotiations, it didn’t seem like he was bluffing.

Cohen and president Sandy Alderson had no problem walking away from George Springer when his ask soared to six years and $150 million, the contract he ultimately received from the Blue Jays. But would the Mets stand on their number at the risk of creating an uncomfortable dynamic with their star acquisition heading into such a pivotal season for the franchise? Or even risk losing Lindor should he file for free agency in November?

Those were questions that continued to hang over the Mets during their final preseason workout Tuesday in D.C. Manager Luis Rojas didn’t describe the public nature of the negotiations as a distraction before the team took the field, but it’s definitely creating a different vibe than the one Mr. Smile fostered under the sunshine in Port St. Lucie. At least from the outside. Rojas insisted that Lindor has been the same guy as his contract deadline creeped closer. Nor did he believe it would be a problem if his future in Flushing remained unresolved past Opening Night.

"Not really," Rojas said before Tuesday’s workout. "I haven't seen any change with him on the field, so I really have no concerns -- zero concern -- with the way he carries himself on a daily basis. He's pretty solid. He’s consistent with his demeanor. With everything else, he’s a talented player, but he's very professional on and off the field. He shows up every day just to make himself better and then make everyone better around him. So there's no concern from me or any of coaches right now."

By David Lennon

dave.lennon@newsday.comDPLennon

David Lennon is an award-winning columnist, a voter for baseball's Hall of Fame and has covered six no-hitters, including two perfect games.