It’s an annual tradition.

Just like trees blossoming as spring arrives, optimism builds ahead of Opening Day.

One year after the Mets and Yankees entered the 2023 season with World Series expectations and failed disastrously, the sentiment around the two New York teams is far more subdued this time around.

FanGraphs projected the Yankees to win 88 games this year, but injuries to Gerrit Cole and DJ LeMahieu, as well as Aaron Judge and Anthony Rizzo missing time in the spring, have delivered new concerns about their outlook. And the Mets were projected to only win 81 games by the outlet after a mostly quiet offseason.