The Task Is Clear

So here we are.

Final Friday of the season and the picture couldn’t be clearer. And the Walking Dead Mets have taken bullet after bullet and yet still lead the N.L. Wild Card by a game. And if you remember, when the Mets got that huge win in San Francisco after dropping the first two games, and just a couple of games after Yoenis Cespedes returned to the Mets from injury, I laid out the one realistic path to a playoff spot: With a 61-62 record, the Mets had to go 26-13 to get to 87 wins and a playoff spot. In a realm where we, as writers, look for the final nail in the coffin to say “The Season Is Over”, I didn’t believe it quite yet. And believe me, the Mets were close. The second loss in San Francisco was abominable. Even if I kept it to myself, I thought the team was dead. But I wanted to see if health really could make the difference.

The only player’s health that made the difference was Cespedes. Even after that win in San Francisco, they lost Neil Walker, Jacob deGrom, and Steven Matz for the season. And yet this team has found a way to do exactly what they needed to do to get to the point they’re at now: play .667 baseball. And now, all they have to do is play .667 ball for one more series in Philadelphia, and they’re hosting the wild card game.

With 87 wins.

Phillies players held a meeting to refocus. "A lot can happen in four days," Cam Rupp said. "We can ruin somebody else's season." #Mets

— Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) September 29, 2016

Aah yes. That final hurdle to clear before making the playoffs. Of course … of course, it’s Philadelphia. And if you don’t think they want to crush our skulls in because it’s the Mets they’re playing then you don’t understand and you never understood. The bad news is that Jeremy Hellickson, who the Mets have owned, isn’t starting this series. And some guy named Phil Klein is starting, who has no history against the Mets and that’s a scary proposition. Here’s teh good news: The Mets have played .667 ball in Philly this season. And they’re currently on a 25-0 run over two games against Philadelphia. Jay Bruce is hitting .438 with 3 home runs in his last five games, and seems to be finding that good streak that he’s known for just in time to make a difference. And the rest of the team is hitting too.

The Mets are in a great position. Up a game on San Francisco, and two games on St. Louis. All the Mets have to do … and I know I’m making it sound simpler than it really is … is win two games. They will host the wild card game at that point. In that instance, St. Louis can’t catch them, and San Francisco can only tie them and the Mets hold that tie-breaker. Best case, the Mets win the first two games and Noah Syndergaard goes into hiding until Wednesday. We know, as Mets fans, that the wolf is always at the door. But this team has battled the wolf all year and when you look at the Mets with all of their injuries, the Mets will look back at you in the eye and tell you “you should see the wolf.”

Today’s Hate List

Did you see the Cardinals game last night? Where Yadier Molina hit the only walk off ground rule double with a runner on first in major league history because the umpires had a flight to catch?

In honor of that, Greg Prince constructs the hate list:

Bryan Price. Yadier Molina. Bill Miller. Tony Randazzo. Brian Knight. Scott Barry. There's tonight's hate list, @Metstradamus

— Greg Prince (@greg_prince) September 30, 2016