10 early Mets predictions for the 2024 season

New year, same old New York Mets? We'd like to think not. The Mets haven't exactly grabbed the offseason by the horns. Missing on their number one target of the winter, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, has fried expectations for the coming regular season.

Still, the 2024 season has some reason for optimism. This isn’t a team coming off of a complete teardown and rebuild. We couldn’t ask for a better owner. Despite some early doubts, is there anyone else we’d rather have navigating the ship than David Stearns?

Long before the roster is even set and the first pitch has been thrown, let’s get some of our predictions in digital print and check in a few months later to see how we did. They’re good. They’re bad. Some of the predictions are downright ugly.

1) Francisco Lindor, Brandon Nimmo, and Edwin Diaz are All-Stars

The Mets will send three players to the All-Star Game in 2024. Francisco Lindor goes for the first time as a member of the Mets. He's joined by Brandon Nimmo and Edwin Diaz. For Nimmo, it'll be his first ever selection. Finally, he gets the recognition he deserves. None will actually start the game because MLB All-Star voting is more than a popularity contest, it’s a population one. Although none start the game, we’ll see Diaz finish it.

2) Kodai Senga is excellent but only makes 22 starts

Kodai Senga was great for the Mets in 2023. There's little doubt he can repeat the success in 2024. One obstacle is staying healthy. Senga will make his first MLB trip to the IL in 2024 and the result is a year where he makes only 22 starts. Injuries plagued him in the past. If ever there was a year to be more cautious with him, it’s the coming season.

3) Jose Quintana implodes early and never gets right

We didn't get to see much of Jose Quintana last year. At first, he pitched well and was often victimized by poor run support. The quality starts did dry up as time went on. Quintana won't be so lucky in 2024. This coming season he'll be the Carlos Carrasco of the staff but not nearly as bad. Hitters will take advantage of Quintana who relies on getting outs with contact. A year older and only two recorded outs away from 1800 innings, his arm will show his age.

4) Brett Baty and Mark Vientos prove they are big league hitters in some way

Yet to prove themselves as major leaguers, we'll successfully see Brett Baty and Mark Vientos accomplish this mission in 2024. Doubts will remain about Baty as a third baseman. Vientos won't do much to show he can be trusted with a glove either. What they are successful at is showcasing their bats are MLB ready beyond much doubt. Baty will see his overall game improve on the offensive side of the ball with an increase in home run production and batting average. Vientos establishes himself as a legitimate home run threat with the big question remaining of how the team finds him at-bats.

5) Luisangel Acuna, Drew Gilbert, and Mike Vasil debut before September

It's going to be a year for the Baby Mets to expand their playpen. Luisangel Acuna, Drew Gilbert, and Mike Vasil will all make their anticipated MLB debuts in 2024. It'll take place before September, too. Acuna will be the first sometime in June due to an injury. Already present on the 40-man roster, he’s a must to debut in the coming years. Vasil will be the second to arrive to the majors sometime closer to the trade deadline for a spot start. Finally, there’s Gilbert who is a post-trade deadline roster addition to the major league club. We see him take over in one of the corner outfield spots on a regular basis for the rest of the year.

6) The Mets are trade deadline sellers

Boo! For the second straight year the Mets are trade deadline sellers. There's predicting with your head and your heart. The heart says the Mets surprise us all. The head says there's no chance this ball club is good enough to buy at the trade deadline. With several impending free agents and more likely added to the roster before this offseason is over, it could be another year where they successfully added to the farm system in major ways. Will they find a taker for someone like Starling Marte when there is just a year and a half remaining on his deal?

9) Jeff McNeil finishes second in the NL batting title race

Jeff McNeil will return to form in 2024 and finish second in the NL batting title race. Following a rough year in 2023 where he struggled through the dog days of summer, the Mets second baseman relaxes in 2024 with some of the pressure off. We see him challenge late in the year to finish the season with the league’s highest batting average. Luis Arraez is too good in the early months for McNeil to ever catch him.

10) The Mets win 77 games

The Mets will win more games in 2024 than they did in 2023 but not by much. A late season surge once again has fans convinced they can make a run at a wild card spot much like some did in 2023 when the September schedule featured a whole bunch of teams in the race. The Mets actually finish the year on the road with three against the Atlanta Braves and then three more versus the Milwaukee Brewers. Mathematically, the Mets are alive at the start of the road trip. They fall out of it when they see the out of town scoreboard change and a team they needed to lose six straight win their game. Why only 77 games? The Mets are yet again victims of a June slump and a terrible bullpen.