Former Met-killer Chipper Jones picks Mets to win World Series

(AP) Former Atlanta Braves superstar Chipper Jones made a career out of knocking around Mets’ pitching. In fact, Jones enjoyed so much success against the Mets at their former home, Shea Stadium, he actually named one of his three sons Shea.

That’s some next-level trolling right there.

Now though, Jones believes the Mets starting rotation is the most dominant in baseball. Perhaps even dominant enough to shut him down. And even though he’s currently serving as a special assistant for the Braves, he’s gone on record predicting that pitching will lead their division rivals from New York all the way to a World Series championship.

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Jones made those thoughts known during an appearance on MLB Network Radio on Tuesday. During the interview Jones offered effusive praise for New York’s young rotation, which will add Zack Wheeler to the mix this season, and along the way probably annoyed more than a few Braves fans.

“I think they’re my early season pick to probably go all the way,” Jones said. “Having made it to the World Series last year, coming up just short, I think they’ll probably be the early season favorite to push over the top this year.”

“I think the blueprint is kind of what the New York Mets are doing right now,” Jones said. “Obviously it’s hard to come up with three or four guns like the Mets have, whether it’s [Matt] Harvey or [Jacob] deGrom, [Zack] Wheeler coming back, [Noah] Syndergaard. They’ve got the lefty [Steven] Matz. They’ve got a whole entire rotation that lives at 94-95 plus and has an idea of what they’re doing with the breaking stuff. So they’re really setting the bar.”

Hey, the truth hurts sometimes, and we’re guessing it stung Jones a bit to admit this much.

With that said, some are suggesting Jones’ might actually be trying a new method to kill the Mets: The old jinx.

Perhaps that played a part of in his comments, perhaps it didn’t. But even if it did, it probably won’t be enough to hurt a Mets team that seems destined to contend after reaching and falling in last season’s World Series. And beyond that, it probably wouldn’t be enough to help a Braves team that many experts are having a difficult time pegging this season.

Even if the Mets take a step or two back and the Braves take a couple steps forward, the Washington Nationals are right there poised to step up and regain control of the NL East. They still have a strong rotation in place, too, even with the loss of Jordan Zimmermann, and they still have the NL’s best player in Bryce Harper.

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At some point, Jones will have to cover his bases and jinx the Nationals, and several other baseball contenders, if he hopes to help the Braves. Unless, of course, this isn’t about the Braves at all and his sole hope is to prevent the Mets from winning.

If so, that’s just wrong and selfish, Chipper.

If we’re being completely serious though, it seems like Jones just knows when to call a spade, a spade, and a Shea, a Shea. He can’t do anything about it anymore, so he might as well acknowledge it.

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