The New York Mets once again find themselves in the National League Championship Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, marking the first time since 1988 the two clubs have matched up in this round.
It’s also the first time the Mets have been in the NLCS since the 2015 season when they went on to lose the World Series to the Kansas City Royals. The Mets defeated the Dodgers in the NL Division Series that same year.
But since then, a lot has changed for the club with David Wright no longer leading the roster, now replaced by Francisco Lindor as the captain of the Mets. The ownership and front office have also undergone significant changes since that time, and the Mets are now a free-spending, high-payroll club under Steve Cohen.
They have multiple stars joining Lindor, including Pete Alonso, Brandon Nimmo and Kodai Senga, but the team has far exceeded expectations this year.
After a disastrous 2023 season, the Mets decided to cut payroll by trading Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander, and in the offseason under new president of baseball operations David Stearns, they mostly gave out short-term contracts to undervalued free agents, such as Sean Manaea, J.D. Martinez and Luis Severino.
The Mets were not expected to be a serious contender in what was believed to be more of a rebuild and retooling year, and that was further cemented by a slow start to the season. They hovered around .500 for much of the season until going on an impressive run as one of MLB’s winningest teams to earn a playoff berth.
After getting into the postseason, they defeated the Milwaukee Brewers in the Wild Card Series before taking down the Philadelphia Phillies in the NLDS in four games to now find themselves in a matchup against the Dodgers.
The Mets only made one change on their roster for the NLCS, adding Jeff McNeil in place of Adam Ottavino. McNeil was previously rehabbing from a fractured right wrist and gives the Mets another left-handed bat in an otherwise right-handed heavy lineup.
In removing a pitcher for the addition of McNeil, Luisangel Acuña remained on the Mets postseason roster for the NLCS.
Whereas the Mets dropped down to 12 pitchers for the best-of-seven series, the Dodgers elected for an even split of their 26 active players.
2024 New York Mets NLCS roster
Pitchers (12): José Buttó, Edwin Díaz, Reed Garrett, Sean Manaea, Phil Maton, Tylor Megill, David Peterson, Jose Quintana, Kodai Senga, Luis Severino, Ryne Stanek, Danny Young
Catchers (2): Francisco Alvarez, Luis Torrens
Infielders (6): Luisangel Acuña, Pete Alonso, Jose Iglesias, Francisco Lindor, Jeff McNeil, Mark Vientos
Outfielders (5): Harrison Bader, Starling Marte, Brandon Nimmo, Tyrone Taylor, Jesse Winker
Designated hitter (1): J.D. Martinez
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