This story was excerpted from Anthony DiComo's Mets Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

TAMPA, Fla. -- On paper, the Mets are not as good as they were at this time last year. Count them among the teams that don’t care too much about what the paper says.

When asked on the final day of Spring Training what excites him most about the 2024 club, manager Carlos Mendoza replied: “Everything.”

“The position player side of things, the way our guys are throwing the baseball -- not only the starters, but our bullpen guys -- and our depth,” Mendoza ticked down the list before breaking camp on Monday. “I’m looking at that team that’s going to be down at Triple-A and some of the guys that are going to be in Double-A, because you’re going to need all of them to get through 162-plus. And that’s exciting.”

Some of that may be rose-colored analysis from Mendoza, who has a vested interest in talking up his team. But he’s not the only one who views the Mets this way. Scouts and executives around the league pointed often this spring to the talent in New York’s lineup, the willingness of owner Steve Cohen to make improvements as necessary, and the wide-open National League field as reasons to be bullish on the Mets. Few expect them to win the NL East, but they don’t have to do so to make some noise.

What needs to go right? A little bit of everything

As Mendoza mentioned, the Mets may feature more 40-man roster depth than they have in a while, but the overall upside of their roster remains in question. To compete, they’re going to need All-Star-caliber seasons from Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso. They’ll need free-agent signings Luis Severino and Sean Manaea to approach their ceilings. They’ll need Edwin Díaz to be something resembling his old self, and they’ll probably need their prospects -- particularly starting pitchers Christian Scott (No. 5 Mets prospect), Mike Vasil (No. 11) and Dom Hamel (No. 14) -- to contribute before the end of the year.

Great unknown: Do the Mets have enough upside in their rotation?

New York’s lineup looks solid enough, particularly after the acquisition of J.D. Martinez. The team's bullpen is as strong and deep as it’s been in years. But the rotation is filled with question marks. Kodai Senga, for example, will miss all of April and possibly some of May recovering from a strained posterior capsule in his right shoulder. Severino has struggled to stay healthy throughout his career; Manaea has toiled to find consistency. Will those two, Jose Quintana, Adrian Houser and Tylor Megill be enough to keep the Mets afloat in the first half of the season? Or will New York falter before the Scotts and Vasils of the world can come to the rescue?

Team MVP will be: Lindor

Since a tough beginning to his Mets career in 2021, Lindor has improved each year, finishing ninth in National League MVP voting each of the past two seasons. Now 30, Lindor is still smack in the middle of his physical prime with even more protection around him in the lineup, batting second behind Brandon Nimmo and in front of Alonso. An elite shortstop defender as well, Lindor has the skill set to compete not just for Mets MVP, but the league award as well.

Team Cy Young will be: Manaea

The left-hander was throwing harder this spring than he did a year ago in Giants camp, proving that last year’s velocity gains were at least partially real. He has a revamped pitch repertoire and is as good a bet as anyone to make 30 starts. Senga won’t start enough games to be the team’s NL Cy Young for a second straight season, which opens this title for someone like Manaea, Severino or even Megill. The Mets would be happy to see Manaea reach out and grab it.

Bold prediction: The Mets will make the playoffs

This isn’t as much of a long shot as some might believe. Six teams make it, and while the Braves appear to have a strong hold on the NL East, three Wild Card spots are up for the taking. Even if the Phillies grab one of those, the Mets still only have to do better than teams like the Giants, Padres and a host of NL Central contenders. Plus, the Mets finally have enough prospect capital to swing a deal or two at the Trade Deadline if they desire. October baseball in Queens is quite plausible.