After the Mets signed Harrison Bader, Gio had the reaction of many baseball fans, wondering why his team would continue to covet former Yankee castoffs.
But having pondered it further, Gio is fine with the signing, and believes these high-risk, high-reward one-year deals could end up making the Mets an entertaining watch in 2024.
“I do think they’ll be better than people think,” Gio said. “They’re putting together a team with guys like Harrison Bader, guys with a chip on their shoulder on one-year deals…Pete Alonso in a contract year. I think you’re gonna get a very competitive, into-it team, unlike last year.”
“But if you are someone who is in the Mets marketing department, you’ve got a tough, tough job right now.”
The Mets won’t boast the sexiest roster in 2024, but Boomer hopes they play a brand of baseball that brings the team back into the good graces of the fanbase after last year’s disastrous outcome.
“I want to see hard-nosed baseball…I want these guys diving into bases, stealing bases, bunting guys over,” Boomer said. “I don’t want to see crap, analytic baseball where someone is gonna strike out 150 times and hit 30 home runs. I don’t want that…I want to see hungry baseball.”