HOUSTON -- All eyes will be on the outfield Thursday afternoon at Daikin Park -- formerly Minute Maid Park -- when the Mets face the Astros on Opening Day.
Mets star outfielder Juan Soto will make his debut for a New York team in Houston for the second year in a row. Meanwhile, Astros nine-time All-Star Jose Altuve will debut in left field after playing 1,765 games at second base since his rookie season in 2011.
Last year, it was Soto and the Yankees who opened the season with a four-game sweep in Houston over the Astros, and Opening Day this year will mark Soto’s first game with the Mets, who signed him to a 15-year, $765 million contract in December.
The signing of Soto, the re-signing of first baseman Pete Alonso and the reconstructing of the rotation were the Mets’ major offseason moves after losing to the eventual World Series champion Dodgers in six games in the National League Championship Series last year.
"We are really loaded as a team,” Soto said. “I can’t wait to see these guys going out there.”
Like the Mets, who rallied to reach the playoffs after being 11 games under .500 in late May, the Astros also shook off a slow start in 2024 -- they were 12-24 on May 8 -- to win their seventh American League West crown in the past eight seasons. A Wild Card Series loss to the Tigers -- the first time Houston didn’t advance to the ALCS since 2016 -- has the Astros eager for a rebound.
The Astros lost four key members of their 2022 World Series championship team -- third baseman Alex Bregman (Red Sox), right fielder Kyle Tucker (Cubs), starting pitcher Justin Verlander (Giants) and reliever Ryan Pressly (Cubs) -- but signed Christian Walker to a three-year deal to play first base and will start Isaac Paredes at third base.
“This is a really good team,” Astros manager Joe Espada said. “I know in 2024 we did not finish the race the way we wanted to, but we ran a really strong race. We learned a lot about our club, our organization, our foundation and how strong it is. We were challenged and met those challenges, and I want our guys to be proud of 2024. We put it behind us, and I want us to move forward to get off the block in 2025 and get to where we know we can get to.”
When is the game and how can I watch it?
4:10 p.m. ET/3:10 CT, Daikin Park, Houston
Mets TV/Radio: SNY; SNY on MLB App (streaming); Audacy 880 AM (English); 92.3 WINS HD2 (Spanish)
Astros TV/Radio: Space City Home Network; 790 AM KBM (English); TUDN 93.3 FM (Spanish)
What are the lineups?
Mets (projected lineup)
- Francisco Lindor, SS
- Juan Soto, RF
- Pete Alonso, 1B
- Mark Vientos, 3B
- Brandon Nimmo, LF
- Starling Marte, RF
- Jose Siri, CF
- Luis Torrens, C
- Luisangel Acuña, 2B
Astros (official lineup)
- Jose Altuve, LF
- Isaac Paredes, 3B
- Yordan Alvarez, DH
- Christian Walker, 1B
- Yainer Diaz, C
- Jeremy Peña, SS
- Cam Smith, RF
- Brendan Rodgers, 2B
- Jake Meyers, CF
Who are the starting pitchers?
Mets: RHP Clay Holmes
Holmes, who has spent almost his entire career as a reliever -- including the past three years as the Yankees’ closer -- will be making his first start in seven years when he takes the mound in Houston. He saved 74 games with a 2.85 ERA from 2022-24, relying mostly on his power sinker. The Mets signed him to a three-year, $38 million contract over the offseason, believing he can follow Seth Lugo, Michael King and others around baseball in successfully transitioning from a bullpen to rotation spot.
Astros: LHP Framber Valdez
Valdez, who was 15-7 with a 2.91 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP last year, makes his fourth consecutive Opening Day start, a club record for a lefty and the longest since Roy Oswalt started eight in a row (2003-10). He led the Astros in wins, innings and fewest homers allowed by a starter (13) in 2024 en route to earning AL Most Valuable Player (15th place) and Cy Young (seventh place) votes. Valdez has established himself as one of the top starters in the AL since joining the Astros' rotation in 2020, going 60-33 with a 3.12 ERA and 764 strikeouts in 781 innings over that stretch.
How might the bullpens line up after the starter?
Mets: Edwin Díaz remains the Mets’ unquestioned closer, though his velocity was down for much of Spring Training, prompting questions about how effective he’ll be. Behind Díaz, right-hander Ryne Stanek and lefty A.J. Minter will serve as Carlos Mendoza’s top two setup men. Three stalwarts from last year’s bullpen -- Reed Garrett, José Buttó and Danny Young -- will be go-to guys in the middle innings.
Astros: The only certainty in Houston's bullpen is Josh Hader is the closer and Bryan Abreu is in the setup role, but how do the Astros get them the ball? Tayler Scott, who posted a 2.23 ERA last year in 62 games, returns and is joined by lefties Bryan King and Steven Okert and right-handers Luis Contreras and Rafael Montero, who was DFA’d last year and rebounded to make the Opening Day roster. Ryan Gusto gets the final bullpen spot with Kaleb Ort (left oblique) and Forrest Whitley (left knee) starting the season on the injured list.
Any injuries of note?
Mets: The Mets are missing two of their rotation arms, Sean Manaea (right oblique strain) and Frankie Montas (right lat strain), the former of whom might have started Opening Day had he been healthy. In addition, starting catcher Francisco Alvarez (recovery from left hamate bone surgery) and second baseman Jeff McNeil (right oblique strain) will begin the season on the injured list.
Astros: Walker, who signed a three-year deal with Houston in December, was slowed in camp by a left oblique injury, but is expected to be ready for Opening Day despite only eight Grapefruit League at-bats. Ort and Whitley starting the year on the injured list thins the bullpen depth. Starting pitchers Lance McCullers Jr. (right forearm) and Luis Garcia (right elbow) will also be on the IL to begin the year.
Who’s hot and who’s not?
Mets: Brett Baty won’t start on Opening Day against the left-handed Valdez, but he won a roster spot with a strong Spring Training (1.126 OPS in 20 games) and should play most days at second base. Baty hit two homers in his last three Grapefruit League games. Soto was also a strong performer all spring, matching Baty for the team lead with four homers. Less hot was Lindor, a notoriously slow starter who finished Spring Training with a .523 OPS.
Astros: Among the Astros who swung hot bats in Grapefruit League play were Zach Dezenzo (.391, two homers, 1.070 OPS), Cooper Hummel (.316, five doubles), Meyers (.306, three homers, .935 OPS), Pe?a (.475, four homers, 10 RBIs, 1.300 OPS) and Smith (.342, four homers, 11 RBIs, 1.130 OPS). Among those that didn’t were Diaz (.195), Altuve (.184), Dubón (.143), Alvarez (.147) and Chas McCormick (.176).
Anything else fans might want to know?
? Astros manager Espada and Mets manager Mendoza were teammates and roommates in independent ball with the Pensacola Penguins in 2004 and ’05. Both worked in the Yankees organization before Houston hired Espada as bench coach following the 2017 season.
? The Astros are 33-30 all-time on Opening Day, losing two in a row after winning their first 10 season openers as members of the AL. The Mets are 41-22 on Opening Day, winning eight of their last 10. Their .651 Opening Day winning percentage is the highest of any team.
? In November, the Astros announced a 15-year agreement with Daikin Comfort Technologies North America, Inc., on a 15-year naming-rights deal for the downtown ballpark, replacing Minute Maid Park. The agreement, which began Jan. 1, runs through the 2039 season.