NEW YORK -- Zack Wheeler is jealous that he has missed out on two World Series championships with the San Francisco Giants since getting traded for Carlos Beltran in 2011. He believes the Mets are close to equipped to start matching that success, though.

"I know what's about to happen here," Wheeler said Thursday at Citi Field, as he and teammate Vic Black helped to distribute food to local families in need as Thanksgiving approaches. "If you're human, you can only look at our staff and be like, 'Yeah, they're going to make it to the playoffs here soon, and get a couple of bats and be ready to go.'

Zack Wheeler speaks on Thursday at Citi Field.

"I came from the Giants. I saw it happen over there -- a lot of homegrown talent, young guys coming up and stuff. They've won three World Series [in five years]. It sort of puts a bitter taste in my mouth. Now I want to do it over here with these guys and show them a little bit. Obviously you look at them and you're like, 'Man, I could have won a World Series this year.' But now it makes me want to work that much harder and do it over here with this group of guys."

Wheeler cited the return of Matt Harvey from Tommy John surgery as one reason for optimism.

"He was ready to pitch last year. Obviously they wouldn't let him," Wheeler said. "You all know just as much as I do how much he loves baseball and how much he loves playing and competing. And so I think he's going to be 100 percent when he goes out there and he's going to be ready to go from the get-go. I don't think it's going to take him any time to get going."

As for his own 2014 performance, Wheeler said: "Every pitcher, they'd be lying to you if they didn't say that they get a little bit tired through the season, or aches and pains here and there. I had plenty of those, and I was able to get through every start -- which my goal at the beginning of the season was to get through every start. I turned my season around a little right after the All-Star break. I was real happy about last season. I think at the beginning of the season a lot of groundballs got through, stuff was just falling in -- that type of stuff. It sort of hurt me a lot more than helped me."

As for Giancarlo Stanton's mega-deal with the Miami Marlins, Wheeler recently considered what he would need to do to get such a deal for himself.

"I was thinking about that the other day -- probably four Cy Youngs in a row," Wheeler said. "It has to be, right? It might be more. Look at Kershaw."