The sample size is obviously small. So much of the regular season remains.
The Mets have played only 18.5 percent of their schedule. They have completed 23.6 percent of their divisional slate.
So it would be foolish to make too much of these 30 games the team has played. But it wouldn’t be wise to dismiss them either, particularly the 17 games they have played against the rest of the NL East, 11 of which have ended in their favor.
“Division games are always very important, no matter who it is, no matter what they are,” Chris Bassitt said on Sunday after the Mets split a doubleheader with the Phillies, and with that Game 2 win took their third series from their Northeast neighbors. “Divisional games are always massive. I wouldn’t say it tells us how we compare, I wouldn’t say anything like that. It’s more so we just have to win these games. Divisional games are must-win.”
Perhaps most significant in the Mets’ fast start is that it has mostly come against the teams they will have to beat to reach their stated goal of winning the division. A year ago, they were 39-37 against the NL East. They have beaten the Phillies six of nine times already this season, directly contributing to Philadelphia’s poor start. They began the year by taking three of four from the woeful Nationals and recently split a four-game series with the Braves, the defending World Series champions who have claimed the NL East the previous four seasons. The Mets are currently 6-4 in a 13-game stretch solely against NL East foes with three games left this week against the Nationals in Washington.
“Every game counts. Just as much now as it does in July and August and September,” Pete Alonso said. “We want to [win] as many games as possible.”
That success has enabled the Mets to build an early six-game lead in the division, by far the largest cushion for any division leader in baseball. They have lost consecutive games April 10-11. The Mets came close to losing on back-to-back days on Thursday, before that stunning seven-run, ninth-inning rally against the Phillies.
It has been the overwhelming storyline of this season so far, the consistent nature of this team. Manager Buck Showalter attributed it to “good players with good makeup,” while Bassitt believes it is a reflection of a stout starting rotation without a weak link.
“Every game, we’re in it because we have five quality starters,” Bassitt said.
The Mets have yet to sweep a series or win more than three consecutive games, but they haven’t lost one, either. That has landed them at the top of the division. On Sunday, they became the first team in the sport to reach 20 wins.
“Let’s go Mets, hell yeah,” Alonso said, when told of that feat. “I mean, that’s great, but we want to win the division. That’s the ultimate goal. I feel like for us, we’ve had a great start. We’ve ran the bases well, we’ve hit well and our pitching staff, whether it be starters or bullpen, [have done the job].
“We’ve played such great team baseball. Everyone’s answered the bell.”