New York Mets: Quotes show how team turning page from Braves sweep

For the New York Mets, being swept by the Atlanta Braves in the penultimate series of the season was a worst-case scenario. Now the Mets have to turn the page and be ready for a matchup with the San Diego Padres in the National League Wild Card round this weekend.

New York Mets saying the right things after being swept by Atlanta Braves

Mentally, losing the NL East after leading the division for 175 days this season (including the off days when they were in first) and being forced to play in the Wild Card round could be a tough pill to swallow. However, New York Mets outfielder Mark Canha told the New York Post in this article that winning the East wasn’t the primary goal for the Mets when the season began. The primary goal was, according to Canha, to win the World Series, something New York can still do … but they have to be ready to play against the Padres in the best-of-three Wild Card matchup at Citi Field.

“You can’t win the World Series on Oct. 3, so we have got to win these games, first and foremost,” Canha told the New York Post. “We have to compete and get into compete mode and get ready to compete once the playoffs start.”

Relief pitcher Seth Lugo took things a bit farther in his quotes, saying the Mets would relish a chance at a rematch with Atlanta in the postseason. If that were to happen, it would be in the National League Championship Series after the Mets had discarded the top-seeded Los Angeles Dodgers and the Braves advanced through their side of the bracket as well.

The words from Lugo and Canha are certainly what they should be saying as the Mets prepare for the postseason, but can the Mets as a team live up to the thoughts behind the tough words? Can the team that had the division in its grasp shake off last week’s disappointment, come together, and not only get through the Wild Card but the rest of the NL gauntlet to reach the Fall Classic?

Words matter, but actions speak louder than them every time. We will see just how the Mets “compete” (using Canha’s wording) when the Wild Card round begins on Friday.