Alonso opened up about his great experiences in his first season as an Oriole.
When the Baltimore Orioles inked slugger Pete Alonso to a five-year, $155 million contract over this past offseason, they were ultimately looking for him not only to continue mashing at the plate, but to continue being a clubhouse leader.
Alonso has been nothing short of that in his first season in Baltimore.
On Wednesday morning, the Orioles announced Alonso was unanimously selected by local media as the recipient of the 2026 Louis M. Hatter Most Valuable Oriole Award, an honor handed to the top player on the Orioles each season.
“I just want to leave it all out there. I love playing the game, I just want to be all I can be and do whatever I can every single night to win the game,” Alonso said, according to Orioles on MASN. “I really take pride in wanting to win and giving all I have every single night.”
When Alonso became a free agent at the end of last year, the Orioles stood out to him in their aggressive pursuit of him. In his first year with the team, he gave them a spectacular season at the plate, as he has continued to rake.
Consistently a daunting presence in the Orioles’ top of the order, Alonso leads the entire American League with 110 RBIs, and is currently tied for the AL lead in home runs with 41.
Though the Orioles are slowly seeing their way out of the postseason picture in the final week of the regular season, Alonso has been largely responsible for bringing the team as far as they have come.
“It’s really awesome to be a part of this group, be a part of this team,” Alonso said. “I know where we’re at where we’re at in the standings, but I couldn’t be more proud to be an Oriole. This group, the organization, the city, just beyond appreciative to be a part of it.”
Alonso has also been a constant leader in the Orioles’ clubhouse. When Jackson Holliday was recently asked how he can use his current MLB experience going forward, he mentioned that Alonso has played a big role as a leader for him.
"It's been awesome to be able to learn from Pete and kind of watch him do his thing, and I'm super glad to have a guy like that in our clubhouse and kind of leading the charge in the offense,” Holliday said, according to Jake Rill of MLB.com. “Just to be able to sit and watch the year that he's had, I think it's really cool for me and a lot of the guys in here.”
Alonso earning the award comes as a minimal surprise due to the outstanding season he has had. But with such a fantastic season in his first year in Baltimore, he has his eyes on taking things even further as a group moving forward.
“This year, obviously, we’re not where we want to be. But I want to win in the worst way,” Alonso said. “I think, regardless of the results this year, I feel like hopefully that we take some time to reflect… and we’ll be better next year. I’ll be sure of that.”
