Days before Pete Alonso agreed to return to the Mets, he met at a Tampa social club with his agent, Scott Boras, Mets owner Steve Cohen and president of baseball operations David Stearns. The agenda was simple.

Pete Alonso, the top free-agent first baseman available this offseason, is going back to the Mets, the team announced Wednesday. It's a two-year deal for Alonso that is worth $54 million guaranteed. He will earn $30 million in the first year and the agreement includes an opt-out after that first season.

For much of the offseason, Alonso’s return was no guarantee. At points, Stearns said, he thought “there was a very real possibility that he was going to end up elsewhere.” Cohen described the talks as “exhausting” in late January, adding “I don’t like what’s been presented to us.”

PORT ST. LUCIE — The Mets can expect a “motivated” Pete Alonso this season. David Stearns, the team’s president of baseball operations, used that description of the slugging first baseman Wednesday after Alonso’s two-year contract worth $54 million for a return to the Mets became official.

Will the Mets be willing to re-sign Pete Alonso a second time? Or might they have their heart set on, say, pending free agent Vladimir Guerrero Jr.?

There’s also the fact that the Mets shrewdly offered Alonso the qualifying offer. This made him less attractive to opposing teams because they’d lose a draft pick if they signed him. These negotiations and this prove-yourself contract could bring out the best in Alonso, who Stearns says is a “really motivated player right now.”

The Blue Jays made comparable offers to Pete Alonso, but Alonso chose the Mets for comfort and familiarity. Also, on-base machine Juan Soto’s presence didn’t hurt. Alonso has an .871 OPS with men on base vs. .838 with bases empty.

A week ago, David Stearns and Steve Cohen sat down with Pete Alonso and his agent, Scott Boras, at a tony social club in Tampa. It was an “impressive” venue according to the Mets president of baseball operations,

The New York Mets could have their sights set further down the line after re-signing Pete Alonso, says one insider.

Baseball insider Keith Law examines where re-signing Pete Alonso puts the Mets among the top teams in the National League.