PHIGHT TO THE FINISH
Mets start desperate sprint for playoff spot with series against Phillies
The Mets know they need to sweep the Phillies, or at the very least win two out of three, to still have a chance to be invited to the not-so-exclusive postseason party, or um, bubble
Major League Baseball still isn’t sure where 16 playoff teams will conclude this abnormal baseball season and while commissioner Rob Manfred, slack jawed, frantically waves his hands around, the Mets are still attempting to convert from lovable losers to willing winners; because as of now, the only ones standing in their way is themselves.
The Mets (21-26) open a three-game series against the Phillies in Philly on Tuesday and the opposing rotation is daunting. Former Cy Young winners Jake Arrieta and Rick Porcello will set the series in motion, followed by another strong righty in Aaron Nola who will square off against Mets ace Jacob deGrom on Wednesday before reliever-turned-starter Seth Lugo awaits his adversary. It’s possible Zack Wheeler, who is dealing with a nasty fingernail issue, could pitch for the Phillies on Thursday.
Luis Rojas’ team remains two games behind a wild-card berth, which is where the club has lived throughout most of September. Tied with the Reds for the 11th best record in the NL, the Mets are two games behind the Giants (23-24) for the final playoff spot with 13 games to go. They would also need to leap over the Rockies (21-25) and Brewers (20-24) to keep playing into October.
The Phillies (23-22) dropped to third place in the National League East after they lost four out of six to the Marlins, with their series concluding Monday night in Miami. Though the Marlins (23-21) leapfrogged the Phillies for second place in the division, which would grant them an automatic spot in the postseason, the Mets can change their outlook by taking advantage of Joe Girardi’s bruised Philadelphia team this upcoming week.
On Monday the Mets hit the reset button after dropping two out of three to the Blue Jays in Buffalo. The series result was unsatisfying given the Mets featured their three best starters this past weekend. The Mets won for deGrom (4-1, 1.67 ERA) on Friday, which is something of an encouraging trend for the t eam t .his season. They’ve gone 7-2 when their ace is on the hill because, as Dominic Smith put it, the lineup “wants to back him up with some runs.”
But they lost Lugo and David Peterson’s starts — one was brutal, the other was an unsurprising bullpen implosion. The momentum they had built from a come-from-behind win against the Orioles to wrap up their previous homestand and the 18 runs the offense scored for deGrom both vanished wherever Lourdes Gurriel Jr.’s home run off Peterson landed Sunday.
The road ahead figures to be agonizing — only because the Amazin’s set it up so that their most difficult days are ahead of them. They must realistically win nine or 10 games to finish .500 and better their chances at sneaking into the expanded playoffs, where more than half of the league will revel in a different kind of October baseball. But, to get there, the remainder of the schedule demands perfection.
It’s a wonder the Mets still have a fighting chance given how the season has played out. Pete Alonso leads the Mets with 11 home runs, but he went 1-for-13 against the Blue Jays over the weekend and is batting .222 with 51 strikeouts and a .768 OPS this year. Two positive COVID-19 tests in the organization derailed their winning ways in August. The Amazin’s earned their longest winningstreak of the season, three games, just before the virus inflicted a four-game layoff. The week they returned to action, Smith took a knee during the national anthem in protest of police brutality. The following day, the Mets supported Smith by postponing their game against the Marlins in a powerful statement that backed the Black Lives Matter movement.
Playing baseball through a pandemic and nationwide social unrest and injustice has presented its own challenges, the details of which may always remain within the confines of a clubhouse but will surely go down in the history books.
Despite it all, the Mets have three players who could earn MVP consideration, a back-toback Cy Young award winner going for his third and, quietly, a closer who is finding his confidence and asking the team to trust him in high-leverage situations. The pieces are in place to find out what the Mets can do in the postseason. If not, the sour aftertaste, wondering what could’ve been, will consume Flushing’s offseason — at least until a new owner starts making noise.
So, the Mets are hanging on. They have a chance. Their last, last, last, last ditch effort has the potential to create unforgettable drama. But, now and until the end, every game is a mustwin. The final act of their 2020 season starts in Philly.