Is it the do or die stage for the Mets season?
The Mets lost a game they led late again on Sunday, and Brandon Nimmo is headed for an MRI ahead of the Mets most important stretch of the season
What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️
The Mets failed to complete a weekend sweep of the Marlins, falling to Miami 3-2 on Sunday afternoon (Box)
RHP Paul Blackburn rebounded from a rough outing in his last start, firing six innings and allowing just a run on four hits
Francisco Lindor notched his team leading 72nd RBI with a two out hit with RISP in the 5th
Brandon Nimmo hit a go-ahead solo homer in the 6th but unfortunately it was the last time the Mets scored
Down by one, the Mets got singles from Jose Iglesias and Tyrone Taylor to start the 9th, but were unable to push the tying run across
The Mets finished their season series against the Marlins 7-6, they’re 7-9 in August, 26-41 when their opponent scores first, 22-17 against the NL East, 13-38 when scoring three or fewer runs, and 15-14 since the All-Star Game
MLB announced the Mets and Mariners will play in the Little League Classic in Williamsport next August
Playoff Race 🏁
The Padres and Diamondbacks both lost, but most critically to the Mets the Braves did not, and Atlanta now holds a two game edge on the Mets for the final playoff spot.
There are 38 games remaining.
Per FanGraphs, the Mets have an 22.7% chance of making the postseason.
New York has the 5th most difficult schedule in MLB the rest of the way.
Tiebreakers:
vs. ATL: 5-5
vs. ARI: 2-2
vs. SD: 3-0
vs. CIN: 2-1
vs. STL: 4-2 (finished)
vs. SF: 2-4 (finished)
vs. PIT: 5-2 (finished)
vs. CHC: 4-3 (finished)
The next ten days… ✈️
The Mets open a ten-game stretch during which they will play three teams over .500 between the Orioles, Padres and Diamondbacks. Seven of those ten games are in San Diego and Phoenix.
The Mets are 25-35 against teams over .500 in 2024. They’re 4-3 vs the AL East and 13-12 against the NL West.
Roster Moves 📰
OF Starling Marte (knee) activated from injured list
OF Ben Gamel was designated for assignment
Injury Updates 🏥
OF Brandon Nimmo left Sunday’s game due to right shoulder discomfort and will have an MRI on Monday
Down on the Farm 🌾
IF Brett Baty (Triple-A): 3-for-5, HR, 2B, 2 RBI, 2 R
1B Ryan Clifford (No. 4 Prospect, Double-A): 3-for-3, HR, 2 RBI, BB
BOX SCORES
Single-A STL | High-A BRK | Double-A BNG | Triple-A SYR
Mets Top 30 Prospect Rankings
Today’s Game 🗓
Match-up: Mets (64-60) vs. Marlins (45-78)
Where: Citi Field — Flushing, NY
Starters: LHP David Peterson (7-1, 3.04 ERA) vs. LHP Trevor Rogers (2-11, 4.89 ERA)
When: 7:10 PM EDT
Where to Watch: SNY
It feels like we’re entering the do or die stage of the Mets season… ✍️
If you would’ve read this headline in the middle of May you would undoubtedly have been thrilled to learn that in three months time the Mets season would still have a pulse.
But heading into a difficult stretch to conclude the month of August, the campaign could be on life support in two weeks if the Mets can’t go on another run.
After playing like one of the best teams in all of baseball for a month and a half from the beginning of June through the all-star break, New York’s results have been uneven since the Midsummer Classic. The Mets are just 15-14 over the last month, they’ve let a handful of games frustratingly get away, and have dealt with more than their fair share of inconsistencies.
That fact, combined with the more aggressive approach the Diamondbacks and Padres took at the trade deadline, has made the Mets path to a postseason berth more convoluted.
It certainly now looks like the Mets most realistic path to a Wild Card berth is to overtake Atlanta in the sprint to the finish. The Braves have also had similar struggles in the second half and have been decimated by injuries, but they still hold a two-game edge on the Mets thanks to Sunday’s results.
After a long road trip that clearly fatigued the Mets, they came back home and have disappointingly gone just 3-3 against the A’s and Marlins—two teams they simply had to take advantage of, and didn’t. Failing to do so has put them behind the eight ball, as a three team, ten game gauntlet awaits them now.
For starters, the Orioles - who've been locked in a tight race with the Yankees for the AL East lead that seems to go back and forth by the day - will be at Citi Field the next three days. Baltimore is not an ideal opponent for the Mets to get back on track against, but it’s imperative New York at least finds a way to win the series.
Because after that, another west coast trip immediately awaits, this time with visits to both San Diego and Arizona. They will play Wednesday afternoon in New York against Baltimore and then Thursday evening in San Diego.
That’s, well, not great right off the bat.
As I mentioned, both of San Diego and Arizona teams have distanced themselves from the Mets in the Wild Card standings, but not to the point where a Mets sweep couldn’t close the gap dramatically.
This team has risen to the occasion at several different points over the last several months, but to me it feels like they have to do it again right now or watch the 2024 season fall by the wayside.
Brandon Nimmo being forced to leave Sunday’s contest with discomfort in his right shoulder is obviously not going to help the cause, but perhaps the return of Starling Marte can offset whatever kind of absence Nimmo will have to endure.
Should the Mets make it through this stretch in decent shape, they do have September series against several teams that are under .500 which could certainly position themselves for a fun fall.
One day at a time, though, and to me it’s imperative the Mets come out with urgency tonight, get the opener from Baltimore, and try to ride some momentum into the rest of the week.
And hey, if the Mets are a playoff team, the next ten days shouldn’t be a problem, right?
Around the League 🚩
The Dodgers got six shutout innings from Clayton Kershaw and beat the Cardinals 2-1
Framber Valdez struck out nine across seven scoreless frames in the Astros 2-0 blanking of the White Sox
Tampa Bay got a walk-off hit from Dylan Carlson as it beat the Diamondbacks for a 2nd straight day
Vinnie Pasquantino drove in three runs in the Royals 8-1 win in Cincinnati
These next 10 games will determine if we still have a shot in September. 5-5 will probably be a win.
Meanwhile, Stearns continues to clean out the front office. So here we go into the 5th year of the Cohen era with a rebuild job - both in the dugout and upstairs - ahead.