Pete Alonso hit what looked like a home run, watched it get overturned on replay review, and then did something very on-brand: he called out MLB’s replay system for not having enough technology to get these calls right. The irony is almost too good — a player demanding better tech, burned by the tech that already exists.
What happened
On August 20, Alonso’s drive was initially ruled a home run on the field. A crew chief review overturned it. The Mets challenged, and the replay room in New York upheld the overturn. No home run. No runs. Move on.
Alonso didn’t go quietly. According to Yahoo Sports, he made his position clear after the game: baseball needs more technology to get these calls right. Which is a completely reasonable take — except the existing technology just ruled against him.
The replay problem
MLB’s replay system was built to be definitive — more camera angles, more certainty, fewer arguments. But definitive and correct aren’t always the same thing. The league has never fully solved what counts as conclusive evidence to overturn a call, and fans, players, and managers have been frustrated by that standard for years.
Alonso’s argument isn’t new, but his timing gives it weight. According to Statcast, he averages 94.2 mph in exit velocity — 99th percentile in MLB. When Alonso hits a ball toward the wall, there is real data behind where that ball is going. The suggestion that the technology to track those balls with precision already exists but isn’t fully deployed in the review process is hard to dismiss.
This is the uncomfortable part of his complaint: he’s not wrong about the system needing upgrades. He’s just also the guy who lost the homer under the current rules.
Why his voice on this carries weight
This isn’t a fringe player ranting about a bad break. Through 128 games in 2026, Pete Alonso has posted 29 home runs, 82 RBI, an OPS of .858, and an xwOBA of .392 — 98th percentile. He hits the ball as hard as almost anyone in the sport. His barrel rate sits at 14% (91st percentile) and his hard-hit rate at 56.3% (98th percentile). When he makes contact, it tends to matter.
The replay system exists partly because of hitters like him — because the difference between a home run and a long out changes games, playoff races, careers. If the technology can’t reliably resolve those moments for one of the best power hitters in baseball, that’s not just Alonso’s problem. That’s the league’s credibility problem.
The numbers behind the bat
Alonso doesn’t show up in Statcast’s elite tiers by accident. Here’s what the data shows across the 2026 season:
- 551 plate appearances
- 29 home runs and 82 RBI
- AVG: .269
- OPS: .858
- xwOBA: .392 — what he «should» be producing based on quality of contact (98th percentile)
- Average exit velocity: 94.2 mph — 99th percentile
- Barrel rate: 14% — 91st percentile
- Hard-hit rate: 56.3% — 98th percentile
- Average bat speed: 74.6 mph — 77th percentile
- Sprint speed: 7th percentile — one of the slowest players in the sport
Whether MLB acts on Alonso’s complaint is a separate question. But he put it on the record, and it’s hard to argue with the guy standing in the batter’s box with a 94-mph exit velocity who just watched a homer turn into an out.
