Jesse Winker open to time at first base to help Mets fill potential Pete Alonso void
NY Post
Jesse Winker got to a Mets team in late July that had been hovering around .500 for most of the season.
By the end of the year, the Mets came within two wins of the World Series.
The 31-year-old Winker is back with the Mets on a one-year deal worth up to $9 million, and will be teammates with Juan Soto, which gives the team some of the same expectations they had in the second half of 2024.
Asked during a Zoom call on Wednesday if he felt there was “unfinished business” following last year’s loss to the Dodgers in the NLCS, Winker said, “For sure.”
“I think anytime you come that close to getting to the World Series, you’re always gonna want to give it another shot,” Winker said. “You never know how close you’re gonna be again. It’s precious.”
The roster figures to look considerably different in 2025, as the Mets added Soto on a 15-year, $765 million deal, as well as Clay Holmes and Frankie Montas to the rotation and A.J. Minter to the bullpen.
In a different time, in a season to come, we may be inclined to wax poetic about the way this one played out. In a different time, in a season to come, the Nets will be seeking to stack wins and not losses, will be fighting for playoff seeding and not for a few extra ping-pong balls in the draft lottery this spring.
The NBA has an All-Star Game problem. Despite Adam Silver’s efforts to inject juice into the February showcase — including a format alteration to the 2025 game that is too confusing to attempt to understand before it’s inevitably changed again — there’s little interest in watching teams eschew defense for a series of layup line highlights. That also means the most entertaining part of the NBA All-Star Game is just like the Pro Bowl — debating over who should get a spot.