The Mets will play in front of home fans for the first time since 2019 on Thursday, and a new face will be on the bump.
Taijuan Walker, acquired over the offseason, gets the start for New York’s home opener, and is ready to give the Citi Field crowd a good first impression when he faces the Marlins.
“It's exciting, my Mets debut and it gets to be the home opener, so it's pretty exciting,” Walker said during a Zoom call with reporters on Wednesday. “We're gonna have fans in the stands, it's definitely gonna be a special day.”
Walker’s job has become more important with the loss of Carlos Carrasco, who is still working his way back from a hamstring tear, and after his strong spring and strong finish to the 2020 season with the Blue Jays, the 28-year-old is hoping to prove himself to the Mets fanbase right away.
“They're really passionate and they care a lot about their team,” Walker said. “It's actually really good to see, we had a lot of Mets fans here in Philly. So it's been really nice. Yesterday was sick when we had that big game and scored a lot of runs and just to hear the Mets fans cheering us on, it was special. I really can't wait until tomorrow.”
Walker’s debut comes later than expected due to the first series of the season being postponed because of COVID-19 cases with the Nationals, but Walker has done his part to stay sharp and ready for Thursday’s home opener, and is ready to go as deep into the game as he’s allowed in his first start in a Mets uniform.
“I threw on Saturday, feel like four innings, probably 55 pitches,” Walker said. “Just kind of heating up. And then a couple bullpens in between. My arm's been feeling really good right now, I like where my stuff is, I like how I felt in those four innings. Definitely ready to go. I'm just gonna go out there and go as long as I can until Luis takes the ball from me.”
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