The New York Mets enter this offseason still searching for a durable, everyday answer at first base.

More than a year has passed since Pete Alonso departed as a free agent, and the club has yet to locate a hitter who can reliably anchor the middle of the lineup the way Alonso once did.

Production at the position has been inconsistent, leaving a clear hole that the front office continues to try to fill through both free agency and the trade market.

One name that has surfaced in those discussions is St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Alec Burleson, per MLB insider Pat Ragazzo.

After being named a Silver Slugger in 2025, the soon-to-be 28-year-old followed with the best season of his career in 2026.

He hit .279 with a .343 on-base percentage and .473 slugging percentage, posting an .816 OPS while belting 26 home runs and driving in a Major League-leading 116 runs.

Those numbers produced a 3.7 WAR, the kind of well-rounded production the Mets have lacked at the position.

Burleson does not possess Alonso’s raw power, yet his swing profiles well for Citi Field’s dimensions. The ballpark tends to reward line-drive hitters who can clear the shorter porches in right and right-center, and Burleson’s contact-oriented approach has already translated into consistent run production.

For a Mets lineup that has needed more steady RBI threats, he would represent a clear upgrade as an everyday option rather than a platoon or short-term stopgap.

Acquiring him, however, would not be simple. The Cardinals view Burleson as a central piece of the core they are building under president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom.

Coming off a season in which they again missed the postseason, St. Louis is focused on the future, and Burleson fits squarely into that timeline.

Jordan Walker’s breakout, J.J. Wetherholt’s strong rookie campaign, and the presence of other young pieces have given the organization reasons for optimism, making the club reluctant to move a productive, controllable bat unless the return is substantial.

Any serious Mets offer would likely need to include multiple high-end prospects, possibly supplemented by major-league-ready starting pitching.

The Cardinals have shown little interest in dealing Burleson for less than a package that meaningfully accelerates their rebuild.

While the Mets have the prospect capital and pitching depth to make such a bid, matching St. Louis’s valuation remains an open question.

Still, the fit is logical enough that Burleson’s name continues to circulate. The Mets need a reliable first baseman who can hit in the middle of the order, and Burleson just delivered the kind of season that would stabilize that spot.

Whether the two sides can find common ground on the cost will determine if the interest remains only a rumor or becomes an actual trade.