I’m so excited to play MLB in London this summer – visiting Stamford Bridge would be a bucket list item for me
PETE ALONSO hopes to smash his London trip out the park this summer by ticking off a bucket list item.
The New York Mets home run machine will be one of the star attractions when MLB returns to the London Stadium in 50 days time.
But Alonso, 29, threw a curveball by revealing he would look to take a detour from east London to west.
The Mets star is a massive Chelsea fan and would love to mark his first trip to the UK with a visit to Stamford Bridge.
And he said: “I’m really stoked. I have never been and I’m just really excited to see what the city has to offer.
“It’s going to be really exciting to see baseball fans in the UK.
“Being a New Yorker is really special. There’s this really intriguing and unique energy you can’t get anywhere else and I feel like London is one of those cities as well.
“It’s such an iconic city, it’s filled with history.”
Alonso added: “I’d love to visit Stamford Bridge – that would be a one of them bucket list things for me.
“Also, seeing the Palace and the London Eye.
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“I’d love to walk around Soho, try a proper Sunday roast, fish and chips and hopefully a proper pint – after the game, not before.”
Alonso became a Chelsea fan after admiring the skills of Didier Drogba at the 2006 World Cup.
The Mets star said: “Chelsea was his club then and seeing him play, the dude is a very physical player.
“He’s also a guy that plays with power and grace and it’s very interesting.
“He plays football like an American free safety. It’s really funny how passionate he is, how graceful he is but also how aggressive in his game play.”
Alonso and the Mets will take on the Philadelphia Phillies at West Ham’s London Stadium on June 8 and 9.
MLB returns to London after last year’s Chicago Cubs vs St Louis Cardinals series at the same venue.
I’d love to walk around Soho, try a proper Sunday roast, fish and chips and hopefully a proper pint
Pete Alonso
Baseball’s first foray into the UK was in 2019 when the New York Yankees took on the Boston Red Sox.
Mets relief pitcher Adam Ottavino, 38, was playing for the Yankees back in 2019 in tough conditions for pitchers.
The Yankees won the two clashes 17-13 and 12-8 befure the ballpark was reconfigured last year, which resulted in lower scores.
The Cubs and Cardinals split the series with Chicago winning 9-1 on Saturday and St Louis coming out on top 7-5 a day later.
Ottavino said: “It was a really cool experience, certainly the biggest crowd I’ve ever pitched in front of, and just something different.
“We hadn’t done it before so it was really cool to be the first over there, had a great experience and definitely looking forward to going back.
“I don’t know that I have any secrets, I felt like I got lucky to get out of there unscathed considering what was going on that series.
“I’m looking forward to the two days that we don’t play and to get to do a lot of things around town, travel and try to have a really good experience.”
New York Mets will play Philadelphia Phillies in the MLB World Tour: London Series 2024 on June 8-9 at London Stadium. Tickets are on sale now at ticketmaster.co.uk/MLB.