CHICAGO — Brandon Nimmo may be the human embodiment of a golden retriever, however for as upbeat because the Mets outfielder constantly is, he’s additionally real looking. A key group chief who helps set the tone within the clubhouse, Nimmo is remaining optimistic in regards to the group’s possibilities to achieve the postseason this week, however he additionally is aware of these chances are high diminishing.
“It’s been happening right in front of our eyes,” Nimmo mentioned Sunday after the Mets misplaced a collection to the moribund Washington Nationals. “I can definitely believe it.”
The Mets, as soon as thought of a World Sequence contender, are exterior of the playoff standings for the primary time since April 5 as they enter a collection towards the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday. The Cincinnati Reds have an equal document (80-76), however personal the tiebreaker towards the Mets. The Arizona Diamondbacks, a recreation behind each groups, additionally owns the tiebreaker over the Mets.
It’s not an enviable place to be in with the Cubs and the Miami Marlins developing this week, particularly for the reason that Mets play each groups on the highway. Solely 4 groups within the league have a worse highway document than the Mets (31-44), the Pittsburgh Pirates, Colorado Rockies, Minnesota Twins and Chicago White Sox — 4 of the 5 last-place groups.
It’s a catastrophe of epically embarrassing proportions for a group with a $350 million payroll, but the Mets are nonetheless assured they will steal that final postseason spot from the Reds or the Diamondbacks.
“We can turn it on in an instant,” Nimmo mentioned.
There may be nothing to point that the Mets are able to turning it on shortly. The group has been exceptionally streaky all season, going from the perfect group in baseball till June, once they vacillated between trying like one of many worst groups within the league to world-beaters. They’ve been unable to cease lengthy shedding streaks, they usually haven’t sustained an extended successful streak since July.
However even when all of that is offered to them, they nonetheless stay optimistic in regards to the upcoming week.
“No doubt, a tough couple losses there, and I think everybody here knows kind of where we’re at and what’s ahead of us,” mentioned right-hander Clay Holmes. “But as a player, I think there’s still the opportunity to make something special happen. I think you have to go in this week with the mindset of, you’ve just got to leave it out there. I mean, who knows? You can’t try to control results, you’ve just got to go out there and play like how you play, and just leave it on the field.”
How, precisely, are they capable of preserve this optimism? The followers are satisfied it’s all a facade, a results of the group telling them what to say. No group within the Mets’ place would overtly admit to their doubt; admitting defeat with six video games left would present a shedding mentality. The group is adamant they’re nonetheless able to successful. It appears to be a real sentiment.
It’s the expertise of final 12 months’s playoff run that has the Mets satisfied they will nonetheless pull it off, and the expertise of the veterans within the clubhouse.
“I feel like veteran guys have kind of been in this situation before,” mentioned left-hander Sean Manaea. “Maybe not the exact situation, but we’ve been in some precarious situations before, and the young guys have been stepping up. So I think a combination of that is good, and I think if anyone can do it’s us.”
Nonetheless, final 12 months the Mets had a stable pitching rotation in September. Essentially the most precarious scenario is pitching, although the lineup can usually go chilly — and keep that manner — simply as shortly as it will possibly get sizzling.
The Cubs have been embarrassed over the weekend by the Reds, who jumped into the Wild Card standings by sweeping them at Nice American Ballpark. The Marlins are persevering with their time-honored custom of enjoying spoilsport, pushing again ace Sandy Alcantara to Friday in an try and knock the Mets out of the race.
“We know we’re going to get good baseball,” Nimmo mentioned. “The atmosphere is going to be great, we have to just feed off of it. and enjoy it because not everybody gets to be in this position.”
Ought to the Mets attain their objective and get right into a Wild Card spherical, they’ll probably face the Los Angeles Dodgers, the group that knocked them out of the League Championship Sequence final fall en path to successful the World Sequence.
However the Dodgers are additionally proof which you can get artistic with pitching within the playoffs. They beat a Yankees group with a full rotation through the use of relievers as bulk guys and starters who have been so low on the depth chart they probably wouldn’t have pitched had it not been for all the accidents to the rotation.
The mentality is to get in, and see what occurs. However first, moving into the postseason is proving to be extra of an uphill battle than anticipated.
Initially Revealed: September 22, 2025 at 7:15 PM EDT
