The anticipation for the 2024 Mets campaign will have 24 extra hours to build.
The club announced the postponement of the Opening Day matchup against the Milwaukee Brewers at Citi Field on Wednesday afternoon, moving the game from Thursday to Friday at 1:40 p.m. ET because of rain in the forecast.
Left-hander Jose Quintana will start against Freddy Peralta and the Brewers. Both of them signal a changing of the guard of sorts with their respective teams. The Mets’ rotation is no longer as star-laden as it once was, but they’re hoping a grouping of Quintana, Luis Severino, Tylor Megill, Sean Manaea and Adrian Houser can be consistent and dependable until their flashy ace, Kodai Senga, is able to start the season.
For Milwaukee, this marks the first time in five years that someone other than Corbin Burnes or Brandon Woodruff has started on Opening Day. This is also the Brewers’ first year without David Stearns, their former president of baseball operations who now holds the same title with the Mets, and manager Craig Counsell, who went to the Chicago Cubs in the offseason. Counsell’s former bench coach, Pat Murphy, is now the manager.
The Mets also have a new manager in Carlos Mendoza. He’s as excited as anyone to get going Thursday, but he won’t let a postponement make him nervous.
“I’ll try to keep it one day at a time,” he said Wednesday at Citi Field after the Mets held their preseason workout. “We’ve got a lot to do, a lot of preparation and a lot of conversations. I’m pretty sure when that day presents, there will be a lot of emotions. I’m really looking forward to it.”
Fans who purchased tickets for the opener will be able to use them the following day. Parking lots will open at 10:40 a.m., and gates will open an hour later. Season-ticket holders who can’t attend are allowed to exchange their tickets for another 2024 regular season game up until Friday at 10:30 a.m.
