Mets' postseason success has shades of 2022 season — scared yet Phillies?
Mets' Francisco Alvarez (4), Harrison Bader (44) Pete Alonso (20) and others celebrate in the dugout in the eighth inning during Game 1 of the National League Division Series against the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Oct. 5, 2024. Credit: Newsday/William Perlman
PHILADELPHIA — By the ninth inning Saturday night, the Mets had drained once-raucous Citizens Bank Park of just about everything en route to swiping another improbable playoff victory, this time by the score of 6-2 over the Phillies in Game 1 of the Division Series.
Noise, fans ... hope. Poof. Gonzo.
It’s what the 2024 Mets do. They did it in Atlanta, in Milwaukee. Snatch souls, pop champagne, catch a flight to the next victim’s ballpark.
And if anyone should recognize the trail of heartbreak the Mets are leaving in their wake, it’s the core of this Phillies’ roster, which did the same exact thing two years ago, squeezing into the playoffs as an 87-win team before wreaking havoc in October, all the way to the World Series.
Of course, no ever expects it to happen to them, and neither did the NL East champs after running away with the division (until a September swoon). Not with Cy Young contender Zack Wheeler, the former Met, taking the mound for Saturday’s Game 1, an often untouchable October foe (a downright silly playoff-record 0.73 WHIP going in).
But the Mets don’t necessarily have to head-on beat your best. They’re content to outlast, to frustrate, to patiently wait for that window of opportunity -- then smash right through. So as Wheeler kept piling up zeros Saturday, the Mets never panicked. Every pitch they made Wheeler throw got them closer to that chance, and when he left after seven scoreless innings, the Mets did what they do — won the game with five runs in the eighth inning.
The Mets went 1-for-21 against Wheeler, then started 5-for-5 against the Phillies’ bullpen, all grinding two-strike hits. Mark Vientos, Brandon Nimmo, J.D. Martinez each supplied RBI singles. Pete Alonso and Starling Marte delivered sacrifice flies. The Mets made fast work of three Phillies’ relievers, giving themselves a 5-1 cushion that was a rare luxury during this incredible stretch.
“I feel like one of the things we've talked about is just finishing the game all the way to the ninth inning,” Vientos said. “And the game is never over until the ninth. We've kind of been running with that mentality. I feel like the past week in Atlanta, then the last game in Milwaukee, we kind of showed that and it's giving us more confidence for doing that.”
The Mets just don’t get shook. Ever. Kodai Senga gets pulled from Port St. Lucie exile for Saturday’s surprise start, then instantly serves up the worst-case scenario: a 425-foot missile to Kyle Schwarber, on his third pitch. For whatever reason, Senga chose to challenge a homer-machine like Schwarber with a 96-mph center-cut fastball. It nearly wound up in Delaware.
On contact, the ballpark went absolutely bonkers. And for the Phillies, a team trying to shed the rust of a five-day layoff, it was the perfect antidote. Everyone in the building probably felt all there was left to do was sit down with a cheesesteak and wait for the Phillies’ landslide.
They should’ve known better. If the Phillies could ambush October back in 2022, then the ’24 Mets could do the same. Senga settled down to provide two innings (his ghost fork was scary again) and piggy-back starter David Peterson allowed only one hit over three scoreless to set up a Mets’ relief corps that’s pitched over their heads for weeks now.
“Momentum is a big thing,” Nimmo said. “And having confidence is a big thing. And the guys are showing a lot of that right now.”
For the Phillies, it was like looking at a mirror. They understood how dangerous the Mets would be coming into this Division Series because two years earlier, they were the danger, rallying from eight games under .500 in June — after the firing of manager Joe Girardi — then clinching the last wild card on the season’s final day to conclude a hectic three-city road trip.
Sound familiar? Ironically, the ’24 Mets have basically followed their East rival’s ’22 playbook for the past five months, and could end up booting them out of October. Remember, those underdog Phillies motored all the way to the World Series before ultimately losing to the Astros. You’d be foolish to think Carlos Mendoza & Co. aren’t capable of doing the exact same thing.
“I definitely see a lot of similarities,” Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto said on the eve of Game 1. “Baseball is such a game of momentum, it’s very contagious. So when you start gaining confidence and you start feeling good about yourself and you see your teammates success, and then you coming up in a big spot, that’s extremely contagious and just gives you confidence going forward.
“I think that’s something you’re seeing with the Mets right now. They’re a really hot team and they have a lot of momentum. You get into (the playoffs) late, you’re riding the high, then you just roll with that confidence and it takes you through.”
Realmuto also issued a stern warning to his Phillies: killing that Mets’ roll was of paramount importance, especially with the NL East champs sitting home idle for the week leading up to the Division Series. If not, the Phillies could get steamrolled, just like Realmuto’s magical crew did to the Cardinals, Atlanta and Padres back in ’22.
That history is now repeating itself, only with the Mets writing the script. No one knows how this October will end just yet, but Game 1 felt awfully familiar. Go ask the Brewers how it turns out.
David Lennon is an award-winning columnist, a voter for baseball's Hall of Fame and has covered six no-hitters, including two perfect games.
