Here are five things to watch as the Mets and Brewers play a three-game series in Milwaukee that has huge playoff implications for New York…
Preview
Is Francisco Lindor ready?
Before Wednesday’s game against the Braves was rained out, Lindor was in the lineup for the first time since exiting early against the Phillies in Philadelphia on Sept. 15.
He had been making slow but steady progress in the days leading up to being in the lineup against the Braves on Wednesday, incrementally increasing his baseball activities before eventually hitting from both sides of the plate in the cage and running the bases at full speed.
It’s fair to believe that Lindor’s name being in the lineup before the games on Wednesday (and Thursday) were rained out means that he’ll be all set when the Mets open their series in Milwaukee on Friday night.
But until his name is in there, we’ll have to wait and see.
New York has gone 6-2 during Lindor’s absence, more than holding its own without the dynamic player who will likely finish second in National League MVP voting. But getting him back as they enter the final games of the season would be an enormous boost.
The Brewers have nothing to play for
Milwaukee has clinched the NL Central title and does not have any way to catch the Phillies or Dodgers for one of the byes to the NLDS.
That means the Brewers are locked into the No. 3 seed in the playoffs. They will be playing in the Wild Card Series, hosting the No. 6 seed in all three potential games.
Even though they have nothing to play for, the Brewers will obviously not roll over and let the Mets take these games. But it’s fair to wonder how long they’ll push their starting pitchers, how often they’ll use their best relievers, and whether they’ll give some of their position players days off.
Brewers ace Freddy Peralta pitched on Wednesday, meaning the Mets won’t face him in this series. Frankie Montas is expected to pitch on Friday, but Milwaukee has not announced starters for Saturday or Sunday.
As far as the Brewers’ relievers go, it is impossible to envision them using elite closer Devin Williams much in this series. He has pitched just twice since Sept. 13 and has thrown in back-to-back games only twice this month.
Even if they’re not pushing their pitchers and position players to the max, the Brewers are a formidable opponent. And the Mets will have to be on their game to beat them.
How will the Mets be impacted by the Braves postponements and layoff?
The Mets looked sloppy and disjointed during Tuesday’s loss in Atlanta, which was a disorienting thing to witness because they hadn’t looked like that in months.
While New York’s offense was stifled by Spencer Schwellenbach and Luis Severino had a start where he simply couldn’t find it, the most glaring thing for the Mets were the defensive miscues they made — with some of them being mental.
Luisangel Acuña botched a double play ball (recovering to get one out) and Brandon Nimmo misplayed a hop in the outfield. But more concerning was Starling Marte air-mailing the cutoff man while hopelessly throwing home (allowing the runner to advance to second) and Francisco Alvarez running into Severino on a dribbler that caused Severino to throw wide to first and set in motion Atlanta’s only big inning.
There’s no reason to believe the Mets will carry any of that over into their series in Milwaukee.
And it’s possible that the days off and change of venue will allow them to clear their heads and come out fresh on Friday.
Mets Wild Card clinching scenarios
Hanging over this series is the possibility that the Mets will have to head to Atlanta after Sunday’s game in advance of a doubleheader on Monday.
But the possibility exists that the Mets clinch a Wild Card spot in Milwaukee.
The above will have to do not only with how the Mets play, but how the Braves fare against the Royals and how the Diamondbacks do against the Padres.
Here’s one scenario:
If the Mets go 2-1 against the Brewers and the D-backs go 1-2 against the Padres, the Mets would be 89-71 and Arizona would be 89-73. That would clinch a playoff spot for the Mets because they own the tiebreaker over the D-backs.
No matter what happens in Milwaukee, the Mets’ season will continue beyond Sunday — whether they’re already in the playoffs or not.
What’s next?
Even in a scenario where the Mets are swept by the Brewers and the Braves sweep the Royals, the Mets would still be able to clinch a spot by sweeping Monday’s doubleheader, which would put the Mets and Braves in a tie and give New York the tiebreaker by virtue of winning the season series.
But the Mets could also clinch a playoff spot on Saturday or Sunday.
In a scenario where the Mets have clinched and the D-backs are eliminated, and there is only seeding to be determined between the Mets and Braves, whether the game(s) gets played will be at the discretion of the Commissioner.
In a scenario where the Mets have clinched and the Braves are eliminated, it’s difficult to envision either game of the doubleheader being deemed necessary.
Predictions
Who will the MVP of the series be?
Francisco Lindor
That’s the storybook ending to his and the Mets’ storybook season
Which Mets pitcher will have the best start?
Sean Manaea
Manaea has been on another level since dropping his arm angle
Which Brewers player will be a thorn in Mets’ side?
Rhys Hoskins
If any Brewer is extra motivated this series, it’s Hoskins