NEW YORK -- Pete Alonso’s first year in Baltimore proved to be a historic one.
The Polar Bear became the first MLB player to have two seasons in which he finished as the RBI leader in each league. In 2022, Alonso led the National League with 131 RBIs while playing for the Mets. And this year, he recorded an American League-high 113 RBIs for the Orioles.
RBIs have been an official stat since 1920, and it took 106 years for this to happen.
Alonso was easily the AL’s top run producer, as no other player in the league had more than 106 RBIs. Houston’s Yordan Alvarez (106) and Tampa Bay’s Junior Caminero (101) were the only additional AL players with 100 or more RBIs.
After signing a five-year, $155 million deal with the O’s this past December, Alonso played all 161 games this season. (Sunday’s Orioles-Yankees regular-season finale was cancelled due to rain.) The 31-year-old slugger has played every game in three consecutive years.
Not only was Alonso the AL RBI champion, but he also led the league in home runs with 43. He finished ahead of Alvarez and Caminero, who each slugged 42. Alonso hit .267 with 24 doubles and an .885 OPS.
Alonso became the sixth player to win a homer crown in both leagues, joining Shohei Ohtani, Mark McGwire, Fred McGriff, Sam Crawford and Buck Freeman.
Teammates were highly impressed by what they saw from Alonso all season.
“His year has been unbelievable,” shortstop Gunnar Henderson said. “You just laugh every time he hits a homer now. It’s so cool to watch. It’s so fun to be a part of and to be on the team with him. He’s been just awesome to have around, and really looking forward to playing with him for many years.”
“He could very well be a Hall of Famer when it’s all said and done,” left-hander Trevor Rogers added. “The fact that I played with him and saw how he went about his business every day, it’s special.”
For Alonso, the stats weren’t the most important thing. He was instead disappointed that the O’s (79-82) couldn’t make it to the postseason, failing to reach the playoffs for the second consecutive year.
Next year, Alonso’s primary focus will be trying to find a way to lead the O’s into deep October.
“I just want to leave it all out there,” Alonso said. “I really love playing the game, and for me, I just want to be all I can be and do whatever I can every single night to win the game, you know? I really take pride in wanting to win and giving it all I have.”