Evan isn't thrilled with how the Mets offseason went, but he still has a sense of optimism in 2024, as he notes the parity of the MLB playoffs and the remaining core of a team that won 101 games in 2022 as reason to believe.
"Baseball is a very weird sport nowadays, where the regular season has been devalued," Evan said. "All you have to do is win 85 games, sneak into the playoffs, and you have a chance to win it all. That's what baseball is in 2024.
"If you don't believe me, look what the Diamondbacks did, even look what Texas did, and look what the Phillies did two years ago."
The Mets pitching staff may not be as strong as it was in 2022, but the lineup has a lot of the same bats, while it could even improve in some areas.
"It's basically the same freaking roster," Evan said. "The only difference is, Eduardo Escobar isn't at third base, Daniel Vogelbach isn't the DH, and they're not putting up the human pitcher spot Tomas Nido behind the plate…can you not see how this is the same core roster?"
So, the Mets may be the third-best team in their own division, but with more Wild Card spots and more postseason parity than ever, Evan says there is reason to believes that 2024 can still be a special season.
"It's not that the Mets are gonna win 100 games, or that they're better than the Braves. Just win 86 games. Just give me a crack at it," Evan said "Nobody can tell me that you wouldn't be excited about the Mets being in the NLCS. You'd be fully into it at that point."
