NEW YORK — The Mets left Georgia last weekend knowing full well they lost the opportunity to control their own fate, so when the out-of-town scoreboard read “FINAL” Tuesday night, there was little solace in the fact that the offense that deserted them against Atlanta was now clicking smoothly against the lowly Nationals. Here they were – the Mets’ winningest team in 34 years – taking out a cruising Taijuan Walker in the fourth inning because the game they were playing had turned meaningless before their eyes.
Atlanta defeated the Marlins, 2-1, Tuesday night, clinching the division and securing the Mets’ Wild Card series against either the Padres or the Phillies beginning Friday. The Mets, in turn, made easy work of the Nationals, beating them in Game 1 of a doubleheader, 4-2, and scoring seven quick runs in the first inning of Game 2.
Carlos Carrasco had a good-enough bounce-back performance in Game 1 and Taijuan Walker was downright brilliant in Game 2 before getting the hook about as soon as the Atlanta score became official. Walker, likely the favorite for the Mets’ fourth starter this postseason, allowed no runs on four hits in 4 1/3 innings, with no walks and 10 strikeouts.
Meanwhile, the Mets offense, led by Brandon Nimmo, showed some pop, with Nimmo going 3-for-5 with three RBIs and a solo home run in Game 1. Game 2 started off with a bang (bang, bang), as Nimmo, Francisco Lindor and Jeff McNeil led off the first with three straight homers, the first time in franchise history that the Mets’ first three hitters have hit home runs. Edwin Diaz earned the four-out save, his 32nd of the year.
McNeil, who went 2-for-3 in Game 1, continued his fight for the batting title. Hitting .328 (.327851) after Game 1, he’s just ahead of the Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman, who came into the day batting .325 (.32450) and was playing a late west coast game Tuesday.
If there can be a bright side to losing the division – and to be clear, for a team that was once up 10 ½ games, there’s really not – it’s that, despite getting swept by Atlanta over the weekend, the Mets did not so much give up the lead as they had it pried from their hands. Atlanta went 45-22 in the second half (.673), earning them their fifth division title in a row.
All three Wild Card games will be at Citi Field and with the division no longer in play, the Mets can save Jacob deGrom, whom they were planning to pitch Wednesday if the NL East was still within their grasp. As it stands, then, the Mets will have deGrom, Max Scherzer and Chris Bassitt lined up to pitch against what currently stands to be the Padres. That presumably doesn’t free up deGrom until Game 2 of the Division Series, should the Mets advance.
After that, Buck Showalter will have to choose between Carrasco and Walker – something that’s still in flux, he said Tuesday.
“We’ve got some tough decisions to make down the road and we’ve got some good options to pick from,” Showalter said. “We’ll take everything into play once we find out who we’re playing and when we’re playing and there’s just a lot of variables – things that are causing us to be ready to pivot.”
After twirling a gem against the Pirates on Sept. 15, Carrasco struggled in his next two, allowing seven runs in seven innings. “In this one, I felt better,” he said. “To be honest with you, that homer, I don’t know how that guy hit that ball right there. The wind was blowing crazy today, but we won the game and that’s what we’re looking for.”
As for what that means for the playoffs, Carrasco embraced the theme of the night.
“I don’t know yet, man,” he said. “I don’t know.”
