Juan Soto's and Pete Alonso's free agencies will be a fascinating dynamic

Two pending free agents, two New York players, two Scott Boras clients. But that’s where the similarities end for Juan Soto and Pete Alonso.

These have been two very different walk-year experiences, right down to the way the two biggest soon-to-be-available names in the Bronx and Queens have handled their expiring residencies (now entering the final month of the regular season).

Soto is virtually guaranteed of extending his pinstriped stay into October. Alonso is closer to a coin flip, as the Mets trailed Atlanta by three games for the third wild-card spot before Saturday night’s game in what loomed as a weekend layup series against the White Sox.

And if either slugger has grown weary of this summer’s persistent conversation about what’s ahead in free agency, the discussion is only going to intensify once the postseason starts and the stage shifts to a national audience (and media presence). By then, the anticipation will have long been replaced by exasperation — at least until the offers start percolating come November.

Take Soto, for instance. In the midst of a career season — and historical pairing with almost-certain MVP Aaron Judge — Soto has consistently deflected any questions about his next destination. He also hasn’t shown a hint of emotion about fostering any special connection with the Yankees or New York.

Last weekend was a textbook example. After Soto padded his career-best home run total with No. 37 last Sunday, spearheading a back-to-back-to-back with Judge and Giancarlo Stanton, the Stadium fans chanted “Please Sign Soto!” As someone who has seemed to enjoy interacting with the Bleacher Creatures during roll call, Soto definitely heard the serenade, but he squirmed uncomfortably when his free agency was brought up, rolling his eyes at the interrogator at one point.

“They have to talk to Cashman,” Soto said, smiling.

That was Soto’s attempt to switch topics. But when another question came about his decision and how it pertains to the Yankees, he replied, “We don’t know yet.”

Despite Hal Steinbrenner’s suggestion in June that he would engage Soto and Boras in contract discussions during the season, there is zero chance that the outfielder’s camp is signing anything before he hits the open market — i.e., getting the Mets’ Steve Cohen, the sport’s richest owner, involved in the bidding war.

As for his Bronx experience, Soto has guarded his negotiating leverage the way he does the strike zone, refusing to budge in either direction. He’s performed like the ideal mercenary, and with his own top-five MVP finish likely, Soto is obsessive about protecting his first shot at free agency and trying to topple Shohei Ohtani’s record 10-year, $700 million contract from last December.

In this past week’s return to Nationals Park, his first home before the Bronx became his third team in three years — a rare progression for a “generational talent” who still is only 25 — Soto again switched to the (Boras) company line when asked about his sentiments.

“At the end of the day, right now I’m playing for the Yankees,” Soto said. “I’m happy where I’m at and we will see what happens in free agency.”

Soto has been using “right now” as a point of emphasis since his first Zoom introduction as a Yankee in mid-December, the absolute minimum amount of fanfare possible for such a blockbuster trade. Soto wore a Yankees cap for the media session, but there was no pinstriped jersey, no follow-up Bronx unveiling flanked by Steinbrenner and general manager Brian Cashman.

Everyone knew the deal going in, and that apparently is how this is going to finish, too. The Yankees backed up their World Series or Bust claims for this season by trading four top pitching prospects and paying $31 million in salary for a one-year rental. Soto, for his part, has teamed with Judge to create baseball’s most feared duo, hitting .292 with 37 homers, 96 RBIs and a 1.010 OPS (second only to Judge’s 1.184 after Saturday’s action).

If Soto knows what other factors besides the highest offer could impact his decision, he’s not saying. Winning this World Series with the Yankees? The chance to collect more rings in the Bronx? Staying with Judge to be talked about as a Ruth-Gehrig combo for the 21st century?

The only sure thing with Soto is that he’s going to be much richer than he already is by next Opening Day, and probably the second-highest-paid player in the game’s history. Which makes what’s happening with Alonso maybe even more intriguing, based on his uneven performance this season and obvious ties to the Mets, who will have their own difficult decision in evaluating his true worth to the franchise.

Alonso grew up a Met as the franchise’s second-round draft pick in 2016, and his affable Polar Bear persona and prodigious power turned him into a larger-than-life fan favorite heading into his walk year. But for all the momentum built up from his previous two All-Star seasons, when he averaged 43 homers and 124 RBIs, Alonso seemingly miscalculated by reportedly turning down a seven-year, $158 million offer from the Mets last season.

Shifting to Boras during the offseason was an aggressive move to capitalize on his free agency rather than prioritize returning to the Mets, and his struggle to get back to the heights of the previous two years may hurt him on both fronts.

Unlike Soto, who’s treating 161st Street like a subway stop, Alonso repeatedly has expressed his affection for Flushing and willingness to remain a Met long-term.

Alonso continued to climb the Mets’ all-time leaderboards this past week, passing Mike Piazza with homer No. 221 and taking sole possession of third place. If he stays in Flushing beyond this season, Alonso will fly past two more of the team’s iconic players en route to the top spot: Darryl Strawberry (252) and David Wright (242).

“Mike was a childhood hero of mine, so that’s really special,” Alonso said after tying Piazza in Arizona. “He was one of those guys I looked up to.”

Alonso has a real chance to approach the reverential status of Wright by sticking around, which is what the Mets’ captain did before his own 2013 walk year with what ultimately became an eight-year, $138 million extension. Wright, like Alonso, was drafted and developed by the Mets, and he insisted that was a major factor in his decision-making process. To this day, Wright believes it should be a consideration for free agents.

“I will warn — and this doesn’t go out for Pete, it just goes out for free agents in general — that a lot of times, the grass isn’t greener elsewhere,” Wright told SNY this past week.

It will be interesting to see where Alonso will get the most green, and after he already declined that $158 million offer from the Mets, he probably won’t get near that number from new president of baseball operations David Stearns.

Alonso is as durable as ever at age 29, but he’ll have to hustle to get back to 40 homers again (he hit No. 30 in the first inning Saturday night). He is batting .243, which is more in line with his career mark of .250 — way up from last year’s .217 — but his .800 OPS is a little light.

Stearns, new on the Flushing scene, doesn’t have any previous relationship with Alonso. There also is a potential cheaper in-house replacement: Mark Vientos, another righty slugger, could easily move from third base to first for next season.

Alonso’s biggest ally could be Cohen, whose interest can lean beyond the economics of roster construction into more of a fan perspective. Alonso — despite this year’s dip in production — still is a very popular Met.

Of course, Soto’s next destination could determine where Alonso winds up as well.  If Soto decides to re-up in the Bronx, the Mets — flush with the unspent cash —could become more amenable to giving a chunk of that to Alonso.  If Cohen outbids Steinbrenner for Soto, that’s going to require perhaps as much as $100 million more than the Yankees’ pitch. In that case, it’s more probable — but not guaranteed — that the Mets would move on from Alonso’s asking price.

It’s a fascinating dynamic, one that will continue to develop over the next month (or two) before the real drama kicks in this November and beyond.

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.