It’s certainly not like the September series between the Mets and Nationals from 2019.
That year, when the Mets traveled to Nationals Park, just as they did this week for their series that began with an 11-5 win on Tuesday, Pete Alonso hit his MLB-leading 45th home run and Zack Wheeler won his 10th game on Sept. 4 to take two of three in the series.
They still trailed the Nationals by 7 ½ games for the final wild-card spot, but the series, at least, mattered. Two wins meant they gained ground. And with a month of baseball remaining, anything was possible.
The Nationals kept winning and took the World Series. The Mets missed the playoffs. The Nationals started a rebuild two years later by trading Max Scherzer, Trea Turner and then, in 2022, Juan Soto. The Mets went all-in by adding Scherzer, Justin Verlander and compiling the largest payroll in MLB history.
