Opening Days are here again!

After suffering through a brutal winter, we've finally made it to April. A time where we start to really look forward to warmer days and barbecues and road trips. What makes April - or perhaps the last week of March, if we're being precise - even better is that it marks the start of the baseball season for the big leagues and the minors as well.

The New York Mets started the season on March 27 in Houston, and lost to the Astros; following a 3-3 road trip at Houston and Miami, the team came home to open the Citi Field schedule this past Friday with a 5-0 win over the Toronto Blue Jays. As I mentioned on a recent podcast, over the last three seasons, the Mets have finished tied with the Braves twice - tied for first in 2022 and tied for second in 2024 - so winning games in April and May are just as important as winning games in August and September, when the pennant races are in full swing.

The Mets went on to sweep Toronto and now own a 6-3 record through the first nine games of the season; through nine games last year, they were 3-6, and more or less had an uphill battle the rest of the way. With the Marlins now coming to town for three, and then a six-game road trip against two struggling teams in the A's and Twins, the Mets have a golden opportunity to stack up some wins now instead of having to scramble for them later.

As a whole, the pitching - from starters to relievers - have been outstanding, and that's what's been keeping them in games while the offense has struggled at times. As of Sunday afternoon, the Mets have a team batting average of .197, the fifth worst in baseball, but possess an incredible MLB-best 1.91 team ERA, which is more than half a run better than the second place Dodgers (2.48). Keep in mind that they're doing this without two of their starters in Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas, who each may miss a month or more due to injuries. A cause for concern is that only one starter went at least six innings over those first nine games; continued short starts will eventually wear down the bullpen.

At the AAA level, the Syracuse Mets started the season on March 28 with a win over Worcester; after a rainout and a loss, the team held its home opener on Tuesday and fell 6-2 to Scranton. It was definitely one of the coldest Opening Days that I have ever attended - it hung around 39-40 degrees for the game, and if it wasn't for the sunshine it would have been totally miserable. So far, the two most prominent guys in the lineup for Syracuse have plenty of MLB experience - outfielder Billy McKinney, in his second stint with the Mets, and new Met Joey Meneses, who broke into the majors with Washington after a lengthy minor league career. Outfield prospect Drew Gilbert is currently on the IL, but given his status as the 11th-best prospect in the Mets system, he will figure to be an everyday player once he's healthy.

With the next wave of position player prospects further down in the minors, Syracuse doesn't have many threats in the lineup. it's possible Syracuse may see Jett Williams or Ryan Clifford get promoted from Binghamton; it's also possible (if not likely) that major leaguers Brett Baty and/or Luisangel Acuna get sent down at some point, especially when Jeff McNeil comes off the injured list. Catcher Hayden Senger will likely be off to Syracuse once Francisco Alvarez returns from the IL; infielder Ronny Mauricio has been on the IL since suffering a knee injury in late 2023, and once he is fully rehabbed and ready to go, chances are he’ll get some reps at Syracuse or Binghamton before getting the call up.

On the other side of the ball, Syracuse does have three of the best pitching prospects in the system in Brandon Sproat (#1 prospect), Blade Tidwell (#16) and Dom Hamel (#26). All three may see time in the majors at some point this season. Syracuse is off to a bit of a slow start, but for minor league teams it's not really about the wins and losses, it's about preparing prospects for successful major-league careers. I’m definitely looking forward to seeing how these three pitchers pan out this year.

Let's go Mets!