The Mets are still on the wrong side of the playoff bracket while playing very much like a postseason team.
They won a game Wednesday night — their seventh straight — with a barrage of competence. One pitch. One at-bat. One strong defensive play after another. And terrific feel-the-moment managing by Carlos Mendoza.
That might not be sexy. But in what became an 8-3 victory over the Red Sox, it sure was effective. And it sure has been effective in this period in which they have surged to a season-best 12 games over .500, stayed within a half-game of the Braves for the NL’s final wild-card spot and — if you haven’t noticed — moved just four back of the Yankees for the best record in New York.
“Overall, we did a lot of good things,” Mendoza said.
The Mets got the right pair of Sox at the right time — the White version that has struggled historically all season and the Red type that is falling apart down the stretch. The result has been consecutive sweeps of Chicago and Boston.
And it is needed. Not long ago, it seemed like at least the third wild card would play perhaps in the 84-to-86-win range. But it might actually take 90 or more to get in and so, when faltering opponents show up on the schedule, you must be merciless in hunting wins.
So it is timely that the best version of the 2024 Mets are here now, in part by getting their most buttoned-up defense and relief work of the season. With a 4-3 lead, the Mets turned double plays to end the fifth, sixth and seventh innings. Francisco Lindor, the pivot on all of those twin-killings, opened the eighth by making a superb charging play and throw to get the speedy Jarren Duran.
With two outs in the eighth inning, Rob Refsnyder hit a ball to the right-center gap. Harrison Bader got there quickly and fired the ball in and kept the wide-turning Refsnyder from taking second, so when Tyler O’Neill followed with a single, Refsnyder only made third, rather than scoring. Earlier in the game, Brandon Nimmo twice raced toward the left field line to quickly caught off balls that easily could have gone for doubles and instead resulted in singles.
Again, it is not alluring. But it was winning. Because the Red Sox are built with athletic position players who want to run wild — as they did a few times earlier this year in unnerving the Yankees. So defending well to limit the explosiveness is key. It certainly was in helping five Mets relievers deliver five shutout innings. And how Mendoza used the relievers — aggressively and tactically — were part of this Mets win.
With an off-day on Thursday, Mendoza didn’t dawdle after starter Tylor Megill reeled in a three-run third and then allowed a leadoff hit in the fifth. Mendoza had envisioned this game in his head beforehand and wanted to be “very, very aggressive” with his pen. He also knew with Boston starting lefty hitters, he wanted to be strategic with his two lefty relievers — Alex Young and Danny Young. And he put Alex in to replace Megill.
The aggressiveness paid off with four set-up men who were not part of the Mets Opening Day roster — Alex Young, Huascar Brazoban, Danny Young and Phil Maton — protecting a 4-3 lead before the Mets blew the game open in the bottom of the eighth to provide an easy cushion for Edwin Diaz.
“That was a complete game,” Jesse Winker said.
Winker was part of that thoroughness. Lindor — amid more “M-V-P” chants — extended his hitting streak to 15 games and his on-base streak to a career-best 33 with a single leading off the first, Nimmo walked and Mark Vientos singled to fill the bases. After Pete Alonso struck out before Winker took Tanner Houck to the opposite field for a grand slam.
Houck settled down and Boston did not allow any further runs until another inning of strong at-bats in the eighth against Red Sox closer Kenley Jansen. The Mets, among other items, drew five walks, three with the bases loaded and Bader also lifted a sacrifice fly to assure that the Mets would get to 76-64 — one more victory than all of last season.
And more and more, there is a distancing from last year. The fans at Citi Field are falling hard for the first Mets team of David Stearns and Mendoza. A club that is getting better and doing what a good team, especially at this time of year, has to do by capitalizing on struggling competition.
The Mets did that by following a win in Arizona with consecutive sweeps of Chicago and Boston. They have done this with relentless competence. That might not be sexy. It has been winning, nevertheless.