The Brewers were better than the Mets through 162 games, but the Mets were able to solve it thanks to one eternal swing of Pete Alonso's bat and advance from the National League Play-In Series.
The Phillies were better than the Mets through 162 games, but the Mets were able to figure it out. Because at some point in the fourth game and five days of the NLDS, just about everyone stepped up to be counted, and then Francisco Lindor hit a grand slam. It will be a permanent bookend to the home run he hit to defeat the Braves in Game 161.
As the Mets continue to climb higher and higher into October, there's been a lot of talk about “magic,” and those of us with laptops and microphones were the loudest sonnetators of that story. But it was a disservice to the Mets to reduce the events that began on September 30th to a mire of mysticism. After all, they were the best team in baseball since June 1st. That's true. It's legal.
However, sometimes what is legal collides with what is legal.
And the Mets played the Dodgers. The Mets' 65-39 record since June 1st was the best in the major leagues, but the Dodgers were in 5th place with 61-41, and they had the advantage of already being 37-23 at that point. .
There's a reason the Dodgers won nine more games than the Mets this year, there's a reason why they were able to have an easy October without breaking a sweat, and there's a reason why they were able to miss the play-in round. At 11:24 p.m. Sunday, Francisco Alvarez bounced out to second base to end the game, ending the game 10-5 and ending the season short of the desired six wins for the National League Championship. Here's why they beat the Mets in six games in the series.
And that's why the Mets want to hire the Conqueror.
“We don't just want to be like them, we want to be better than them,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said of the Dodgers, who resume their old postseason rivalry with the Yankees on Friday night. I hope so.”
The Dodgers have made the playoffs every year since 2013. That's the model. That's the blueprint. But part of the package that comes with being an October regular member is being an October regular mourner. With the exception of 2020 and (so far) this weird COVID-19 year, all of those years have ended for the Dodgers just as the Mets' season just ended.
unfortunately. I was disappointed. With the hollow echo of exclusion.
But that's what happens when you take shots every year. And what the Mets want more than anything is for all of this to become a habit rather than a quirk. That's the Dodgers' way. That's the Yankees' way. In a few weeks, one of those teams will feel the same way the Mets felt Sunday. But they will continue to take shots.
“It’s October 20th, so I’m going home,” Mendoza said. “Obviously it stinks because not only have we become a really good team, but we have become a family.
“But we've got our expectations up now. This is what we have to strive for every year to play through October. This year we proved it.”
That's what they want to show every year.
“To be honest,” Alonso said. “Pressure is a privilege. It was a real treat.”
Of course, Alonso immediately pivots from being a key part of the ensemble that helped shape the past three weeks to becoming a dominant part of the Mets' story over the next few weeks. Will he stay or go? Soon, it'll be part of every baseball conversation around here
“I'm proud of everyone in that room,” Alonso said. “I'm so happy to be a part of this team this season. I love New York. I love Queens. I love this team.”
Alonso is right to join in what everyone here hopes will be the beginning of a new era, a new era for everyone here, even Mets fans who have wavered on the other side of the debate. I feel like it reminded me of that. , and a new approach to prosperity each year. Francisco Lindor will definitely be here. Same goes for Brandon Nimmo, Mark Vientos, David Peterson, and Francisco Alvarez.
What about Alonso? We will soon see whether that is reflected in the policies of David Stearns and Scott Boras, the clear-eyed, cold-blooded men who will decide this course. Boras' job is to maximize Alonso's value, and Sterns' job is to determine whether keeping Alonso puts the Mets in the best position to do what matters most.
“We want to start here,” Nimmo said. “We hope this becomes the norm.”
The standard is to report going live by October 20th of each year. These regular trips to the top will probably come with some heartache. However, if you shoot enough shots, you can eventually get there by the end of the month. That should be the standard.
