The Braves and Mets cannot play the last two games of their series due to bad weather, which would affect the definition of the playoffs
ATLANTA — The final two games of a crucial series between the New York Mets and Atlanta Braves were postponed Wednesday because of heavy rain ahead of Hurricane Helene.
Orlando Arcia AP
Now, a wild-card race that seemed headed to the final day of the regular season might require an extra day. And a doubleheader, at that.
The regular season was scheduled to end Sunday, but the Mets are now scheduled to return to Atlanta on Monday for a pair of games 40 minutes apart that could determine who advances to the playoffs.
New York plays three games in Milwaukee against the BrewersNL Central champions begin Friday, while the Braves have a weekend series against the Kansas City Royals, an American League playoff contender.
“We have to move on to the next series now,” Mets manager John Doe said. Carlos Mendoza. “We’re facing another really good team in Milwaukee and we have to go out and not just win a series, but we have to go out and take care of what we have to do. That’s the only thing we can do: control the things we control.”
The Mets (87-70) began the day with a half-game lead over Arizona in the wild-card race, with the Braves (86-71) a game back.
Two of those teams will make the playoffs, which are scheduled to begin Tuesday with the best-of-three wild-card round. “I hope the Royals can get here,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said, looking ahead to an ominous forecast for the next two days as the remnants of the hurricane pass through Georgia.
“I hope they don’t ruin things for us for their series.”
The Diamondbacks played the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday night. Arizona is off Thursday before a three-game homestand against the San Diego Padres to close out the regular season.
The Braves beat the Mets 5-1 on Tuesday night in the opening game of the series against their NL East rivals.
Both teams rested Monday, but there was no indication that the teams or MLB would consider moving up the start of the series. Also, a chance to play on Wednesday was lost before heavy rain hit the area in the afternoon.
With the final two games in Atlanta postponed, the Mets could face an especially grueling travel schedule over the next week.
It’s not out of the question that they’ll fly back to Atlanta for the doubleheader on Monday, then rush to catch another flight, either back to Milwaukee or the West Coast, for the start of the wild-card series on Tuesday if they make the playoffs. Then again, they had a couple of unplanned days off before that stretch run.
