Anthony Dicomo of MLB.com, shares how John Lannan, a native New Yorker, would be thrilled to be able to play baseball close to his home.

If Lannan makes the rotation out of spring training, 2014 will the be the first time in his baseball career that he will actually pitch in his own backyard. Lannon grew up on Long Beach, NY and even though he was a Yankee fan, he made trips to see the Mets with his father and isn’t foreign to the rivalry of the local teams, but now he has an opportunity to be apart of it.

After playing for the Washington Nationals for the first six seasons of career and last year for the Phillies, Lannan gets a chance now to compete for a fifth-starter spot with Daisuke Matsuzaka, Jenrry Mejia and a small pool of prospects, for an opportunity to pitch for a team he grew up watching.

In a telephone interview with Dicomo, Lannan shares, “It was definitely one of my goals to play for the hometown team.”

Realizing that one of his lifetime goals may come true, Lannan is poised to be ready to do what is needed to be a part of a team ready to take off, “Obviously with what’s been going on in the past with the Mets, they’ve held their own and they’ve made some moves this year to continue getting stronger,” Lannan shared with Dicomo. “So it’s exciting to watch. It’s going to be an exciting year, for sure.”

Yes indeed, we are all looking forward to an exciting season, and it would be a great story line in 2014, if Lannan is part of the sudden rise to the top, especially with the opportunity to pitch close to his parents home for the first time in his professional career.