Pete Alonso Wins Rookie of The Year On and Off The Field
Rookie of the Year Pete Alonso had an incredible season in 2019. The 24- year-old brought some life to a Mets team that has not made the playoffs since 2016. He broke the record for most home runs by a rookie, hitting 53 home runs.
This unbelievable offensive power coupled with stellar play in the field, earned Alonso the Rookie of the Year Award in the National League.
In addition to his play on the field, his actions off the field are even more impressive.
This season, Alonzo won the MLB home run derby, narrowly defeating Vladimir Guerrero Jr to take the 1-million-dollar prize. Being signed to a Rookie contract, a million-dollar bump makes quite a difference, but instead of taking all the money for himself, he gave 10 percent to charity, giving $ 50,000 to both the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation and the Wounded Warrior Project.
On the 18th anniversary of 9/11, Alonzo ordered commemorative cleats for all of his teammates. The cleats where customized to pay tribute to the first responders who served during the attacks. Alonso paid for all of this out of his own pocket. After the game, the 9/11 museum asked if he would donate the cleats, and now there is a signed pair of his cleats in the museum.
“I am blessed, and this is just an opportunity to give back,” he told the New York Post. “I don’t want to be known as just a baseball player,” Alonso said. “Some people see me on the field as a competitor, just a spirited guy, but this is the more emotional side of me. I just want to help, that’s all. I just want to be a good person too, I don’t want to just be a good baseball player. At the end of the day, it’s all about helping people.”
During his freshman year of college, Alonso had to take a class called the good life. His first assignment was to write a paper on what his ideal life would be. In the paper, he wrote about wanting to have a family, be a great husband, and be a professional baseball player. Alonzo told SNY Sports that he got a C because his goals weren’t realistic enough.
Five years later, Alonso is an MLB record holder, an All-star, and is living the good life, but the coolest part is he is trying to help others live the good life as well.
