Willy Adames has reportedly signed a massive seven-year, $182 million deal to join the San Francisco Giants. The landing spot and price don’t come as huge shocks, but Adames signing before Juan Soto did certainly wasn’t on anyone’s bingo card.

This was surprising in large part because the 29-year-old was listed as a potential backup plan for every team in the Soto sweepstakes. Instead, the Giants gave Adames enough for him to commit to San Francisco, turning the focus back to Soto and other potential backup plans.

What this also might do is take the Giants out of the market to sign another big-name position player. They have more moves to make, but since they signed Adames, there’s reason to believe that the rotation is a bigger need for them to address.

With that in mind, there’s a very realistic possibility that the Giants, a team that has been thought of as a potential landing spot for Pete Alonso, won’t be as aggressive in their pursuit of landing the Polar Bear. Taking one of the few possible Alonso landing spots out of the equation seemingly makes a return to the New York Mets that much more likely.

Willy Adames deal could help improve Mets odds to re-sign Pete Alonso

Despite all that Alonso did during his time with the Mets, the organization doesn’t seem super thrilled with the idea of re-signing him, and it’s hard to blame them. Giving a 30-year-old first baseman coming off a bit of a down year a long-term deal doesn’t sound extremely appealing.

With that being said, though, the Giants signing Adames could knock a potential suitor out of the mix, and outside of the Mets, who else is there?

The Washington Nationals have been linked to Alonso, but will they be willing to spend big money when signing Alonso would still likely make them the fourth-best team in their own division? The New York Yankees have been mentioned, but Christian Walker feels like a better fit whether they sign Soto or not, given what Walker can do defensively and the fact that he’s expected to sign a shorter-term deal. The Toronto Blue Jays have been mentioned sparingly, but would they really move Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to third base full-time?

Finding realistic Alonso suitors is tougher than you’d think – the Giants were one of few. Assuming the Adames signing takes them out of the running to add another big bat, this sets the stage for the Mets to find a way to bring Alonso back, perhaps at a number David Stearns and Co. are more comfortable with. Alonso has made it clear he wants to be with the Mets, and if his price dips, there’s reason to believe that the Mets would want him back whether they end up signing Soto or not.