The New York Mets have somewhat miraculously worked their way back into strong postseason contention, however, another tough series against the Braves has set them back. In the next two weeks, they will be facing the Cubs, Nationals, and Phillies- their main playoff competition.
The past week for the New York Mets was one of polar opposites. They followed up a riveting three-game series sweep of the Cleveland Indians with a flat series performance, being swept by the Atlanta Braves. Excellent performances from Steven Matz and Jacob deGrom– as well as extensive bullpen work- were wasted due to the Mets inability to score.
However, their opponents did not seem to have much better weekends, as the Cubs were swept by the Nationals and the Phillies promptly dropped two of three from the Marlins. Therefore, the Mets still control their own fate, which is even more evident when one takes a brief gander at the schedule.
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The Mets face off against the Chicago Cubs for three games at Citi Field, then travel to Philadelphia for a three-game weekend series. The following week they play a three-game series in Washington and return to Queens for the final 2019 series against the Phillies.
Therefore, the Mets could easily find themselves out of the NL Wild Card race or in a playoff position at the end of these two weeks- however, the reality of the situation is likely to lie somewhere in between these two extremes. The important takeaway must be that the Mets just need to win and everything will fall into place.
The biggest advantage the Mets have- aside from not playing the Braves- is that they enter this vital Cubs vital series boasting Marcus Stroman, deGrom, and Noah Syndergaard. The pitching matchup is normally tilted in the Mets favor and starts such as that of deGrom or Matz against the Braves cannot be wasted.
The Cubs are weak on the road and do not have a very strong bullpen- two aspects that the Mets are primed to expose. On the other hand, the Phillies have a beleaguered pitching staff and a productive offense. Zack Wheeler and Stroman must find their arms before those games in order to allow the Mets recently stagnated offense to expose the weak Phillies pitching.
The New York Mets have succeeded in becoming a relevant team that has as good of a chance as any to break through into the postseason. However, their strength- pitching- must actually be a strength for them to reach their ultimate goal. Also, some minimal offensive support is also required, as if this was done against the Braves, the Mets may have had two more victories.