Many Mets fans attempted to send a message to the front office about Pete Alonso. 

The front office redirected the message toward Scott Boras. 

During a panel appearance at a fan fest at Citi Field, Steve Cohen was “brutally honest,” he said, in explaining the holdup concerning Alonso’s free agency: The Mets owner is unhappy about the nature of the offers he has received from the Alonso camp and said the team is ready to move on without its slugging first baseman if necessary. 

Cohen, speaking after president of baseball operations David Stearns was drowned out by a smattering of boos and “Re-sign Pete” chants from a sizable portion of the fans in the Piazza Club, said the club has made a “significant offer” to Alonso and not received a counter offer to its liking. 

“Personally, this has been an exhausting conversation and negotiation. [Juan] Soto was tough, this is worse,” Cohen said at “Amazin’ Day” on Saturday. “I don’t like the structures that are being presented back to us. I think it’s highly asymmetric against us, and I feel strongly about it. 

“And so I will never say ‘no’ — there’s always a possibility — but the reality is, we’re moving forward. As we continue to bring in players, the reality is it becomes harder to fit Pete into what is a very expensive group of players that we already have.” 

The Post has reported the Mets offered Alonso (and Boras, his agent) a three-year deal worth about $68 million to $70 million, which Alonso’s camp rejected. Cohen did not detail the structures offered back to the Mets, but if Boras uses the same blueprint as he utilized with Cody Bellinger, it would be a front-loaded deal with opt-outs. 

When the Mets offer was turned down in mid-January they acted as if Alonso would not return to the team, re-signing Jesse Winker, bringing in A.J. Minter and asking Mark Vientos and Brett Baty to take ground balls at first base this offseason. 

“We also feel really good about the young players who are coming through our system,” said Stearns, who was cut off by a crowd that has loved Alonso for six seasons. 

Cohen then took the microphone. 

“I don’t like the negotiations. I don’t like what’s been presented to us,” Cohen said in a rare bit of public transparency (or public posturing) mid-negotiation. “Maybe that changes, and certainly I’ll always be flexible. If it stays this way, I think we’re going to have to get used to the fact that we might have to go forward with the existing players that we have.” 

There was some clapping following Cohen’s defense, and there are lines drawn between fans who want Alonso — a prodigious power threat who is 26 home runs shy of Darryl Strawberry for the all-time record by a Met — and fans who side with management, who clearly have reservations about a long-term deal for a 30-year-old, lumbering first baseman who might be on the decline. 

Publicly at least, just about all of Alonso’s teammates have supported his return. 

“I would love to see Pete back with us, but I also understand that I don’t make those decisions,” said Brandon Nimmo, a teammate as long as Alonso has been in the majors. 

Francisco Lindor said he recently texted Alonso to let him know that he’s been thinking about him. 

“I hope he comes back,” Edwin Diaz said. “But if he doesn’t come back, we wish him the best. Pete is a great person, great teammate, great clubhouse leader. Let’s see what happens.” 

The most logical Plan B for the Mets would be to move Vientos across the diamond, though manager Carlos Mendoza mentioned Jared Young and non-roster invitee Joey Meneses as options.

The Mets believe they have options without Alonso, and his camp will hope it has options, too.

Many teams already have acted upon a first baseman, but he has been connected with the Blue Jays and Angels. 

There is no doubt that Alonso is worth the most to the Mets, with whom he has become a fan favorite, but there is plenty of doubt whether the two sides will see eye to eye on a contract whose negotiations have spilled into the public. 

“We all love Pete, and we’ve said that many times,” Stearns said, before cheers broke out. “I think as we’ve gone through this process, we’ve continued to express that, and we also understand that this is a business.”