The Mets are nonetheless on the incorrect aspect of the playoff bracket whereas taking part in very very like a postseason crew.
They received a recreation Wednesday night time — their seventh straight — with a barrage of competence. One pitch. One at-bat. One sturdy defensive play after one other. And terrific feel-the-moment managing by Carlos Mendoza.
That may not be attractive. However in what grew to become an 8-3 victory over the Crimson Sox, it certain was efficient. And it certain has been efficient on this interval by which they’ve surged to a season-best 12 video games over .500, stayed inside a half-game of the Braves for the NL’s closing wild-card spot and — in case you haven’t seen — moved simply 4 again of the Yankees for one of the best document in New York.
“General, we did lots of good issues,” Mendoza mentioned.
The Mets bought the precise pair of Sox on the proper time — the White model that has struggled traditionally all season and the Crimson kind that’s falling aside down the stretch. The end result has been consecutive sweeps of Chicago and Boston.
And it’s wanted. Not way back, it appeared like not less than the third wild card would play maybe within the 84-to-86-win vary. But it surely may really take 90 or extra to get in and so, when faltering opponents present up on the schedule, you have to be cruel in looking wins.
So it’s well timed that one of the best model of the 2024 Mets are right here now, partly by getting their most buttoned-up protection and reduction work of the season. With a 4-3 lead, the Mets turned double performs to finish the fifth, sixth and seventh innings. Francisco Lindor, the pivot on all of these twin-killings, opened the eighth by making an excellent charging play and throw to get the speedy Jarren Duran.
With two outs within the eighth inning, Rob Refsnyder hit a ball to the right-center hole. Harrison Bader bought there shortly and fired the ball in and stored the wide-turning Refsnyder from taking second, so when Tyler O’Neill adopted with a single, Refsnyder solely made third, slightly than scoring. Earlier within the recreation, Brandon Nimmo twice raced towards the left discipline line to shortly caught off balls that simply might have gone for doubles and as a substitute resulted in singles.
Once more, it isn’t alluring. But it surely was successful. As a result of the Crimson Sox are constructed with athletic place gamers who wish to run wild — as they did just a few instances earlier this 12 months in unnerving the Yankees. So defending effectively to restrict the explosiveness is essential. It actually was in serving to 5 Mets relievers ship 5 shutout innings. And the way Mendoza used the relievers — aggressively and tactically — had been a part of this Mets win.
With an off-day on Thursday, Mendoza didn’t dawdle after starter Tylor Megill reeled in a three-run third after which allowed a leadoff hit within the fifth. Mendoza had envisioned this recreation in his head beforehand and needed to be “very, very aggressive” along with his pen. He additionally knew with Boston beginning lefty hitters, he needed to be strategic along with his two lefty relievers — Alex Younger and Danny Younger. And he put Alex in to interchange Megill.
The aggressiveness paid off with 4 set-up males who weren’t a part of the Mets Opening Day roster — Alex Younger, Huascar Brazoban, Danny Younger and Phil Maton — defending a 4-3 lead earlier than the Mets blew the sport open within the backside of the eighth to supply a straightforward cushion for Edwin Diaz.
“That was a whole recreation,” Jesse Winker mentioned.
Winker was a part of that thoroughness. Lindor — amid extra “M-V-P” chants — prolonged his hitting streak to fifteen video games and his on-base streak to a career-best 33 with a single main off the primary, Nimmo walked and Mark Vientos singled to fill the bases. After Pete Alonso struck out earlier than Winker took Tanner Houck to the alternative discipline for a grand slam.
Houck settled down and Boston didn’t enable any additional runs till one other inning of sturdy at-bats within the eighth in opposition to Crimson Sox nearer Kenley Jansen. The Mets, amongst different gadgets, drew 5 walks, three with the bases loaded and Bader additionally lifted a sacrifice fly to guarantee that the Mets would get to 76-64 — yet one more victory than all of final season.
And increasingly, there’s a distancing from final 12 months. The followers at Citi Discipline are falling laborious for the primary Mets crew of David Stearns and Mendoza. A membership that’s getting higher and doing what an excellent crew, particularly at the moment of 12 months, has to do by capitalizing on struggling competitors.
The Mets did that by following a win in Arizona with consecutive sweeps of Chicago and Boston. They’ve completed this with relentless competence. That may not be attractive. It has been successful, however.
