By admin 
Pete Alonso’s first year with the Baltimore Orioles was perhaps flying under the radar – until now.
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After a torrid stretch at the plate that saw Alonso collect 12 hits in 22 at-bats, the Polar Bear was named the American League Player of the Week from August 10 to August 16. This is the sixth time Alonso secured the honor in his career, yet this is his first in the American League and with the Orioles. Alonso’s previous five Player of the Week Awards came with the New York Mets.
In the National League, Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder Corbin Carroll won Player of the Week.
Your AL and NL Players of the Week:
Pete Alonso: 12-for-22 (.545 AVG), 2 HR, 1.493 OPS
Corbin Carroll: 9-for-22 (.409 AVG), 7 XBH, 1.519 OPS pic.twitter.com/b6x9DnWUxq
— MLB (@MLB) August 17, 2026
The Polar Bear’s Sneakily Strong Season
Alonso had signed a five-year, $155 million contract with the Orioles last winter after a fantastic seven-year tenure with the Mets. The now 31-year-old first baseman entered his first season with Baltimore with 264 career home runs; since entering the league in 2019, only Aaron Judge (285) and Kyle Schwarber (268) had more long balls than the Polar Bear.
Despite a slow start to his Orioles tenure (hitting .198 in March/April), Alonso has since returned to his past form as one of baseball’s most consistent sluggers. Entering August, Alonso was hitting .252/.348/.470 with 21 doubles, 23 home runs, 69 RBI and a 130 wRC+. Outside of the COVID-shortened 2020 season (in which he hit 16 homers in 57 games), the first baseman reached the 30-home run plateau every year of his career and is well on pace to reach that threshold with his new team.
Alonso’s strong play had been rather overlooked this year by the media, as he notably wasn’t selected to the All-Star Game. But last week, he went on a tear that was impossible to ignore.
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In three games each against the Minnesota Twins and Tampa Bay Rays, the Polar Bear tallied a hit in each contest and drew four walks while striking out just three times. His 12 hits included a double and two home runs, while he posted a .630 on-base percentage and .864 slugging percentage. The Orioles even chose to bat Alonso leadoff for the very first time on Friday – and he responded with a pair of knocks.
Run the numbers
Pete Alonso has been named American League Player of the Week! pic.twitter.com/seqFaV64d7
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) August 17, 2026
The monster week pushed Alonso’s hitting streak to eight games; dating back to August 8, he’s hitting an unfathomable .552/.639/1.034 with six extra-base hits, six walks and only four strikeouts. On the season, Alonso is now hitting .266/.361/.490 with 27 homers, 80 RBI, a 140 wRC+ and 3.4 fWAR while playing in all 124 games for the Orioles.
Even with his consistency, Alonso is on pace to have one of the best all-around seasons of his career. And at this point, his status as one of MLB’s best first basemen and right-handed hitters is solidified.
Pete Alonso hits a go-ahead opposite-field homer pic.twitter.com/lkLqaUofMI
— MLB (@MLB) August 15, 2026
What makes this heater even sweeter for Alonso is that the Orioles are beginning to turn their season around. After winning the past three games against the first-place Tampa Bay Rays this weekend, Baltimore claimed sole possession of the third AL Wild Card spot despite sporting a losing record of 61-63.
Alonso and the Orioles will look to sweep the Rays tonight at Tropicana Field. If the Polar Bear continues his hot hitting, then Baltimore can both return to .500 and create some separation in the Wild Card race.
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This story was originally published August 17, 2026 at 3:07 PM.