Well Mets fans, we made it!  Another offseason is over, and as always it was filled with debates about what went wrong last season, what players should be brought in to help this year, and how 2024 is going to be different. A return to the playoffs is the goal!  Opening Day brings standings where the Mets (and everyone else except the Dodgers and Padres) are tied for first place at 0-0. Optimism abounds.

Opening Day 2024

The pageantry, the excitement, the optimism….. the rain! For the second straight year the Mets were rained out on Opening Day. Good job by the Mets postponing Thursday’s game early and moving it to Friday. While it provides little solace to fans that rearranged their work schedules or travel schedules to be at Citi Field to see Jose Quintana’s first pitch on Thursday, it’s better to know ahead of time to have an opportunity to plan.

A few things I will be watching for on Opening Day vs. the Milwaukee Brewers (92-70 in 2023, made the playoffs as the team was built by new Mets President David Stearns):

• Defacto Ace: With Jose Quintana toeing the rubber for Opening Day, the Mets will be playing behind a veteran that’s seen it all. As mentioned in our Pitching Staff Position Profile, Quintana is an experienced starter and should be unfazed by the hype of pitching in Game 1 of 162. Looking forward to Kodai Senga’s return to take his spot atop the rotation.
• Power Sources: They will be fewer until J.D. Martinez gets himself into playing shape and joins the big league club. Homers will be harder to come by with the cooler weather of March/April, but the Polar Bear Pete Alonso (46 HR’s in 2023) and Francisco Alvarez (25 HR’s in 2023, his first full season) are coming off strong power numbers and should continue that this year.
• Cue the Trumpets: I’m going to hold my opinions of the World Baseball Classic, but Edwin Diaz’s freak injury in last year’s WBC cost the Mets their closer all season. It would be so fitting to hear the trumpets and watch Diaz come out of the bullpen to save Game 1.

Fearless Predictions

Okay, Mets fans, here are some bold predictions for 2024.

• Record: Coming off a 75-87 season in 2023 that cost Buck Showalter his job, Carlos Mendoza has come in with a different, more relaxed approach. We’ll see how much it changes the results, but I expect improvement, to 85-77 with a playoff berth. The Mets will fight through the pennant race until the end of the season and it will come down to the wire for them to get in the tournament. Last year, the Marlins and Diamondbacks both made the playoffs at 84-78, and it turned out pretty well for the D-backs.
• Team MVP: There will be, and should be, discussion of Pete Alonso and Brandon Nimmo as the MVP of the 2024 Mets. To me it’s going to be Francisco Lindor.  He plays every day, hits for power, and brings Gold Glove level defense.
• Team’s Best Pitcher: Assuming he gets healthy relatively soon, it should be Kodai Senga and his ghost fork. If he’s out for a prolonged period of time, I’m going to go out on a limb and predict Luis Severino regains his ace form from when he was with the Yankees.

The 2024 season is just one day away. Here’s to a successful, playoff-bound campaign. As always, Let’s Go Mets!!

Stats by baseball-reference.com

By : Jason Krom

Photo Credit; http://www.northjersey.com

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