NEW YORK – Any solace to this Mets meltdown? It might not be as painful as the one from 18 years ago.
Back in 2007, the Mets held a seven-game division lead with 17 games to go, only to blow it and miss the playoffs entirely. That all happened so swiftly and was so improbable and shocking that it’s still mentioned today when teams are plunging like they’ve been dropped into a well.
Count the 2025 Mets as competitors to that 2007 team. For the past few months, the Mets have slowly but surely been collapsing in historic fashion.
Moments after the Mets lost to the Nationals on Sunday at Citi Field, the Reds completed a sweep of the Cubs, moving Cincinnati into a tie with New York for the final National League wild-card spot with just six games remaining on the schedule.
The Reds own the head-to-head tiebreaker against the Mets, which means if both teams end the season with the same record, it will be Cincinnati that moves on to the playoffs, while the Amazins – for all their talent and success this year — will not qualify for the postseason.
“It’s been happening right in front of our eyes, so I can definitely believe it,” Mets outfielder Brandon Nimmo said of the team’s bleak situation. “We’re down to the last week of the season and our playoff hopes are in front of us.”
On June 12, the Mets had the best record in baseball (45-24). They were on a six-game winning streak with a 5.5 game division lead over the Phillies. Their pitching staff boasted the lowest ERA in the major leagues. Their offense, led by one of the most talented top-four hitters in the sport, had the fourth-highest OPS in MLB. They looked unstoppable.
Since June 13, the Mets are 35-52. That record represents one of the worst in the major leagues – with only the Nationals, Twins and Rockies racking up more losses in that span. On Sunday, the Mets’ final regular-season game at Citi Field, the basement-dwelling Nationals notched a series win against them.
New York, as it has done far too many times this year, played sloppy baseball and failed to capitalize on its opportunities.
“We put ourselves in this position,” Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor said. “So we have to find a way to get out of it. And that comes down to winning.”
One such opportunity was gift wrapped in the third inning Sunday, when Mets outfielder Cedric Mullins hit a fly ball to the left-field corner. Nationals left fielder Daylen Lile slammed into the wall while attempting to make the catch, and as Mets catcher Luis Torrens scored from second base, Mullins stood between first and second and only watched Lile lay on the ground in pain. Mullins did not look at the third-base umpire for a call. If he had, he would’ve known it was not a fair catch, and the ball was still in play.
It was only until players in the Mets dugout shouted at Mullins to keep running did he seem to snap out of his reverie and attempt to take second base. But, by then, time was called on the play and Mullins was forced to return to first base. In the next at-bat, Lindor lined into a double play that, had Mullins done what he was supposed to do and advanced an extra base or two while Lile was down on the ground, could have been avoided.
“You gotta take some losses on the chin,” Mullins said. “We have a week left. We have to do some damage. That’s what we’re focused on.”
Those types of mental lapses from Mets players have been costly. There isn’t just inconsistency on the basepaths. It has been a brutal up-and-down season in terms of their offense, pitching staff, and defense, too. The Mets are 0-67 when trailing after the eighth inning. Maddeningly, they are the only team in MLB to not have a win in those instances.
Yet, at the same time, the Mets offense has a 131 wRC+ since August 1, which is ranked the best in baseball. The team’s talented lineup has had flashes of dominance, to be sure. But their second-half offensive surge is largely due to Mets slugger Juan Soto’s incredible performance, including a career-high 42 home runs and 35 stolen bases. Soto leads the majors in walks and leads the N.L. in on-base percentage amid what has quietly been one of his best career seasons.
Soto’s addition to a Mets core that includes Lindor, Pete Alonso, Brandon Nimmo, and a slew of young and talented up-and-comers like Francisco Alvarez, Mark Vientos, and Brett Baty should make them clear playoff contenders. But the Mets, flashing the second-highest payroll in MLB, haven’t been playing like a postseason product for a while now. Whether it’s their three separate seven-game losing streaks, or their pitching staff’s 4.99 ERA since August 1 that ranks 25th in MLB, the Mets can’t figure out a way to build firm, believable consistency.
“We have to play winning baseball and put it all together,” Nimmo said. “It’s come and gone during the season. We just need to pick ourselves back up and win some games down the stretch here.”
If the Mets fail to make the playoffs, or even fail to win the wild-card round on the road, then Sunday afternoon could’ve been Pete Alonso’s final home game as a Met. The Mets slugger is set to enter free agency again this offseason. Though the Mets made Alonso the highest-paid first baseman in the league this year, it is unclear which direction they will decide to go moving forward.
Of course, Sunday wasn’t the first time Alonso was asked whether he considered that it could’ve been his final home game as a Met.
“If I had a nickel for how many times everyone in this room has said that, and I received it every time someone said it, I’d be really, really rich,” Alonso said. “We’ll see what happens. But I’m a firm believer that the right thing is going to happen. You can’t necessarily control destiny. You can’t control what ifs.”
He’s right. The Mets, now chasing the Reds, no longer control their own destiny, either.
This Mets collapse might not be as painful as 2007. But, considering this team’s talent and payroll, there’s a case to be made that it’s more disappointing.
Deesha Thosar covers Major League Baseball as a reporter and columnist for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Deesha grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. Follow her on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.
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