☀️ Good Morning:
After 179 days (+1), Mets baseball is finally back!
There’s no better team to root for on Opening Day. David Stearns will try to begin his tenure by adding to the Amazins’ incredible 41–21 record on the season’s first day.
We have everything you need to get ready for first pitch, including 24 things to keep an eye on at the start of the 2024 season.
☕️ Grab your coffee for your morning dose of Mets Fix!
🍎 THE ROSTER IS SET: Here they are, your 2024 New York Mets! Working with a mostly “frozen” roster in terms of optionality, the new GM paid homage to the old GM in making his final roster decision.
🤔 PHANTOM IL? The Mets would never use “phantom IL” assignments anymore, but as predicted, they saved themselves a difficult roster choice by placing Sean Reid-Foley on the IL with “right shoulder impingement.”
Out of options: The Mets risked losing one of Michael Tonkin, Yohan Ramírez or Reid-Foley to waivers unless one of them landed on the IL.
Health status: Reid-Foley spent much of the spring with discomfort in his biceps. He struggled while trying to pitch last Sunday. However, he claimed to be “healthy” after that outing. Nonetheless, he finds himself on the IL, and we have our Opening Day roster.
👮 New Rules
There are a few new rules to consider this season:
A wider runner’s lane: The runner’s lane has been widened to allow the runner to drift off the chalked line as long as both feet remain on the dirt between the foul line and the infield grass. Previously, the runner was forced to run the last half of the distance between home and first on the right-hand side of the dirt, as shown by the white line below.
Pitch clock changes: The pitch timer has been reduced from 20 seconds to 18 second with runners on base. It will remain at 15 seconds with the bases empty.
Base-blocking guidance: Umpires will be more strict in enforcing rule 6.00(h), which awards the base to the runner when the fielder is ruled to have impeded the runner’s progress while not in possession of the ball and not in the act of fielding the ball. Francisco Lindor was victimized by the new obstruction rule in camp. Manager Carlos Mendoza admitted “it’s gonna drive a lot of people nuts.”
🍎 Weekend Mets Fix
With Opening Day pushed to Friday, we will have a special weekend edition of Mets Fix on Saturday to break down the first game.
👀 24 Things to Watch
24 things to keep an eye on as we start the new season. This list could have easily grown to 48 things, but since it’s 2024 instead of 2048, let’s focus on 24 for now:
❶ Jose Quintana. It starts with him today. He’s the antithesis of an Opening Day starter, relying on ground balls instead of high heat to rack up outs. The veteran southpaw, who last pitched an opener in 2017, had an up-and-down spring, struggling with his command in his final tune-up last week. Temporarily fronting a rotation missing its ace and filled with question marks, Quintana needs to provide a stabilizing presence.
❷ Francisco Álvarez’s defense. We saw how his new mechanics put him in a better position to throw out runners during the spring, but we don’t have enough data to see how it might impact his pitch framing, or whether he can keep it up over a six-month schedule. Álvarez oozes as a future superstar. What type of leap will he take in Year 2?
❸ Brett Baty. This one is pretty self explanatory. The Mets moved off their commitment to Mark Vientos by prioritizing Baty at third and signing J.D. Martinez. Baty has a chance to put his dreadful 2023 season behind him. Whether he hits or not, he needs to be able to pick the ball, otherwise, the argument for rostering him over Vientos becomes weak.
❹ Pete Alonso squeezing the bat too hard. The Mets could technically still negotiate a contract extension that replaces his 2024 arbitration deal if they can come to terms by the 21st day of the season. But don’t count on that happening. How will the pressure of performing in a platform year impact the affable slugger? Will Sammon and Eno Sarris recently analyzed whether hitters become more aggressive in contract years — the answer: yes. After hitting .217 with a 22.9% K rate last season, Alonso needs to have better control of his bat.
❺ What’s left of Starling Marte? Mets fans know that as Marte goes, the offense seems to go. All indications say he is healthy after a season dealing with multiple groin injuries and migraines. After a 7-for-44 spring, it would be nice to see some signs of life in the early going.
❻ Edwin Díaz still sounding the trumpets? He looked his normal self in Florida, but you still have to hold your breath until you see him doing it over a larger sample of meaningful games. Either way, it will feel good to hear those trumpets as the bullpen door opens at Citi Field again. The All-Star closer who is shedding his “Sugar” nickname by eating healthier foods gives the team added swagger.
❼ Return of the squirrel. Jeff McNeil missed most of Spring Training with a left biceps injury. This, after a disappointing 2023 campaign. He usually offsets bad years with good ones. He has been working on pulling the ball in the air more often. Which Jeff McNeil will we get in 2024?
🎧 Mets Fix Podcast
In our latest episode, JB, Peter and Blake get you ready for the start of the season by discussing the latest roster moves, ticket pricing, extension candidates, Jeff McNeil’s future and which player carries the key to the team’s 2024 success.
❽ The final bench spot. Zack Short makes for a great early-season “feel good” story. He shares a bench spot with DJ Stewart while J.D. Martinez ramps up in the minors. It makes sense to option Stewart when Martinez joins the major-league roster, giving Short a longer opportunity with the big club. But eventually, the Mets must decide how they might fit Mark Vientos back into the picture. Jiman Choi is another option, after he decided against opting out of his minor-league deal. His next opt-out date is on May 1.
❾ Tylor Megill’s cutter. I bet you thought I would mention his “American Spork.” That’s what got all of the headlines this offseason, but the incorporation of a cutter that he can throw to left-handed batters has me most excited about his new repertoire. If he keeps the cutter and improves the command on his splitter, he could be very good.
10: Luis Severino. Velocity and command. Two things every pitcher needs. As Severino has tinkered with different grips to improve the shape of his secondary pitches and prevent him from tipping pitches, his success still boils down to delivering his fastball at 97 mph in the right spots. He’s the quintessential X-factor as a player who could re-emerge as a frontline starter or one who never finds his best stuff again.
❶❶ Sean Manaea’s sweeper. When the Mets signed Manaea to a two-year, $28 million contract, many lauded the move by pointing at his velocity improvements and new sweeper. Both of those things came to life when he was pitching out of the bullpen, so it will be interesting to see the speed of his fastball and the shape of his slider as a full-time starter.
❶❷ What about those ugly uniforms? Nike and Fanatics received harsh criticism during the rollout of the new uniform templates. The names on the back of the jerseys are tiny, the pants see through. We have seen pictures of the Mets’ new black jerseys. They aren’t good. Meanwhile, City Connect uniforms will be unveiled in late April. This was a hot story in February, we will see if fans continue to notice during the regular season.
❶❸ Christian Scott’s development. For an organization starving for pitching, Christian Scott can’t arrive on the scene soon enough. The tall, right-hander turned plenty of heads during Spring Training. He still needs to face Triple-A competition and build up his innings count, but don’t be surprised if we see him during the second half of the schedule.
❶❹ A fun roster in Syracuse. How about that Syracuse Mets rotation? There’s Scott, and more! José Buttó pitched as well as he could have without making the major-league roster. He picked up right where he left off to close out the 2023 season. Dom Hamel and Mike Vasil are obviously two important young arms. On the reliever side, you have Nate Lavender. And then there’s Luisangel Acuña and Drew Gilbert, who we will talk about next.
❶❺ Drew Gilbert’s progression. Keep an eye on those Syracuse box scores; if Gilbert acclimates quickly to Triple-A pitching, he could find himself on the Mets’ roster by the end of the season, especially if there’s an injury in the outfield.
❶❻ Outfield alignment. Speaking of the outfield, it’s going to look a bit different this year. It’s not often you ask your $162 million center fielder to move over to left field this quickly into his contract. Nimmo has only played 88 innings in left over the past two years. Enter Harrison Bader. Stearns is prioritizing run prevention, Bader and Nimmo should give him that for most balls hit into the outfield, while Marte tries to hold his own.
❶❼ Kodai Senga’s health. Burying the lede on this one, but I wanted to start our focus on things that will we can monitor in the coming weeks. It goes without saying the Mets will need a healthy Senga to be competitive in 2024.
❶❽ Max Kranick as depth. Similar to Zack Short, Kranick is a lifelong Mets fan who grew up going to Shea Stadium. He will start the season on the injured list due to a Grade 2 left hamstring. Given a fourth option year, the Mets can then send him to Triple-A to act as starting depth.
❶❾ Justin Verlander and payroll implications. The short-time Met threw his second live batting practice this week and is feeling good, but will start the season on the injured list, as he did last year. He needs to pitch 140 innings to trigger a $35 million player option in 2025, which the Mets would be responsible for paying 50%. As we have discussed, while New York has a lot of money coming off the books next offseason, their ability to go all out in free agency will partially depend on Verlander’s option.
20: Performance bonuses. Several current Mets will try to earn extra cash this season. Luis Severino gains $500,000 for 27 games started and $750,000 each for 29 and 31 starts. Jorge López can earn an extra $1.5 million in $200,000 increments if he makes 65 relief appearances. Joey Wendle adds $100,000 for every 50 plate appearances above 250. And Shintaro Fujinami has incentive to make the big-league club and earn another $100,000 for appearing in 35 games ($250,000 each for 40, 55 and 60 games).
❷❶ The Mets’ new Dance Team. Ok, maybe this is something you should try to avoid.
❷❷ The Citi Field food. Spin rates and exit velocities have nothing on the chefs in the concourses. Citi Field has separated itself as one of the best food venues in sports. Check out some of the fun new offerings here.
❷❸ Francisco Lindor’s smile. It’s rare for a superstar athlete to get off to a rocky start in New York and turn things around as seamlessly as Lindor. He has become the leader the Mets believed they were getting when they made the first big splash of the Steve Cohen era by acquiring him. Lindor produced the ninth highest positional WAR last season. For all the talk about the rotation, Alonso and the young players, Lindor is the key to piece everything together.
❷❹ Follow Mets Fix! Believe it or not, this is our fourth season doing this. It wouldn’t be possible without all of your generous support. Thank you for being a part of this wonderful community. We deserve a fun season; let’s get it started today! And since I know one of your favorite features is the bullpen chart, here is the first one of the year:
◾️ Juan Soto made quite the first impression, gunning down the potential tying run in the ninth inning to preserve a come-from-behind 6–5 Yankees win.
◾️ Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman combined to go 5-for-8 with four RBIs in their Dodger Stadium debut together in the same lineup.
◾️ The Diamondbacks set an Opening Day record with a 14-run inning in their 16–1 win over the Rockies.
🔗 Mets ready to embrace new chapter on Opening Day, by Mike Puma, NY Post: “After a winter in which new president of baseball operations David Stearns focused mainly on improving the organization’s infrastructure and creating a pathway for younger players to contribute, the Mets will begin the season far removed from NL East title talk.”
🔗 Mets' Francisco Lindor has grown into leadership role with club, by Laura Albanese, Newsday ($): “This isn’t a column about Francisco Lindor’s mistakes, even though mistakes are part of how he got here. It’s not about his rocky first year with the Mets, the infamous "thumbs down" incident, or the even more infamous rat-racoon incident (ah, memories – strange, strange memories). But you have to mention it all if you’re going to understand the level of transformation he’s undergone in the past few seasons.”
🔗 Mets’ new manager Carlos Mendoza is right on time, by Tim Britton, The Athletic ($): “The New York Mets did not undergo the kind of explicit spring overhaul that Buck Showalter brought with him two years ago when the clubhouse had spiraled negatively during a brutal finish to the prior year. The new manager was less a topic now than it was then, and players in general found the spring as Lindor did. Pete Alonso called it ‘easygoing’ for him.”
Thanks for reading! Follow us on Twitter for regular updates until our next newsletter.
And please check out our newsletters about the Knicks and Isles, too.
Four years blogging? That's not easy. You must be filthy rich!
Thank you for the best Mets blog out there.
And thanks, too, for this sane & thoughtful community that comes here, shares thoughts, and keeps it civil. I'm grateful to have to a place to come with all the swirling Mets thoughts and impressions.
Nobody knows. But it's fun to try to figure it out.
Finally! Happy Opening Day from Switzerland but visiting Australia. Quietly optimistic, new manager is a people person and whatever caused the bad vibe last year seems to be gone. This looks like a good team ready to show it. 🙂