The New York Mets won 101 games and made the playoffs in 2022.
That’s why people expected them to compete in 2023.
Unfortunately for them, the perfect storm of bad outcomes took place and left them rebuilding and with no postseason baseball last year.
2024 is seen as a transition period, but there are enough assets in Queens to think about contention.
They want to do things the right way, and there might be a path toward October baseball with a bit of luck.
To get things started on March 28, manager Carlos Mendoza has already announced the starter for Opening Day against the Milwaukee Brewers.
It’s veteran left-hander Jose Quintana, according to B/R Walk-Off.
José Quintana will be the Mets’ Opening Day starter pic.twitter.com/vlOf9yxB2N
— B/R Walk-Off (@BRWalkoff) March 13, 2024
Quintana missed some time with injury last year with the Mets.
Upon returning, however, he showed how effective he can still be even at 34 years old (he is now 35).
In 75.2 innings, he posted a fine 3.57 ERA with 24 walks and 60 strikeouts.
The southpaw is no longer a threat to pitch 200 innings or strike out 200 batters, like he did in his prime in 2017.
The Mets, however, won’t ask those things from him.
All they need from Quintana is five or six solid, competitive innings every five days.
If he stays healthy the whole year, he can be that rotation stabilizer that has become so underrated these days in the high-velocity revolution.
Quintana has experience, both in the regular season and in the playoffs (where he has a 3.86 ERA in 18.2 innings).
He is the kind of pitcher and presence that is a positive influence in a clubhouse like the Mets’.
He will get an important assignment from New York, but it’s nothing he can’t deal with.
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