The 2024 Major League Baseball regular season will conclude on Monday. That is 24 hours later than initially anticipated. The reason is because two games between the New York Mets and Atlanta Braves are being rescheduled from last week, as they were postponed due to Hurricane Helene. Atlanta and New York only got one game completed from a three game series last week. The Braves beat the Mets 5-1 on September 24, before postponed games on September 25 and 26.
Why is this doubleheader being played?
The reason for the doubleheader is because the Mets, Braves and Arizona Diamondbacks are still battling for the final two playoff spots in the National League. The Mets and Braves have identical records of 88 wins and 72 losses, and have a .001 better percentage point than the Arizona Diamondbacks, who are at 89 wins and 73 losses.
The winner of the first game of Monday’s doubleheader makes the postseason. If the doubleheader is split, the Mets and Braves are both playoff bound. However, if the Mets or Braves win both games, the team that loses both games of the doubleheader is eliminated, and the Diamondbacks make the postseason.
There is a genuine concern from a Diamondbacks perspective, that the winner of the first game of the doubleheader will not start their top players for the second game. It should be noted that the Braves will get the fifth seed if they beat the Mets in the first game as they will have won the season series. However, in order for the Mets to get the fifth seed, they have to win both games. In the playoffs, the fifth seed will play the San Diego Padres, and the sixth seed will play the Milwaukee Brewers.
Key Players
The Braves are led by outfielder Marcell Ozuna of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, who is second in the National League in home runs with 39. Meanwhile, Braves ace Chris Sale of Lakeland, Florida will get the start in the second game of the doubleheader if necessary (if the Mets win game one). Sale leads the National League with 18 wins and 225 strikeouts, and the Major Leagues with a 2.38 earned run average.
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