Recent history supports the Mets and here are three reasons why they can, and will do everything, to beat the Dodgers in the National League
Now comes the most difficult test yet. At Dodger Stadium, with its hostile crowd of more than 50,000, the Mets need two wins against the team with the best record in baseball. In other words, the New York Mets they have to Los Angeles Dodgers right where they want them to be.
“It wouldn’t be our story if it weren’t like that,” said the veteran J.D. Martinez with a smile after the Mets’ 12-6 victory in Game 5. “That’s how we do things.”
New York is looking to become the ninth postseason team to win Games 6 and 7 on the road, and recent history is on its side: Last season, the Arizona Diamondbackssixth seeds, reached the World Series after beating the Philadelphia Phillies twice at Citizens Bank Park.
It can be done. Whether it will happen, that is another question. Here are three reasons why Mets players believe they can, and will, do everything they can to make it happen.
From ‘Grimace’ and ‘OMG’ to the playoff squash, the Mets are a team full of fun and magic. ESPN
1. Starting pitching “has carried us forward all year”
In Game 6, the Mets will have Sean Manaea as a starter with complete rest, followed by Luis Severino if they make it to Game 7. Both have had great performances this postseason, particularly Manaea. Meanwhile, the Dodgers have a bullpen game scheduled for Sunday, followed by a diminished Walker Buehlerwho has yet to win a game in October, in a potential final game. New York could also use Jose Quintana as a starter in any of the games.
“You could argue that one of the big reasons we’re here is because of our starting pitching and their ability to go far in games,” the Mets manager said. Carlos Mendoza this week.
But Manaea, Severino and Quintana have not looked good in their starts against the Dodgers in this series. Combined, they pitched a total of just 13 innings in Games 2, 3 and 4. It was the first sign of fatigue from them this month.
“We also have to understand where we are in the season and where they are physically,” Mendoza said, “Now they are in territory that no one expected.”
On the other hand, Flaherty seemed to hit a wall in his last outing, and Buehler needed 90 pitches to get through four innings in Game 3. Both teams could be seeing some tired pitchers.
All things being equal, including workloads, the Mets believe their starting pitchers put them in a good position.
“You have to be able to rise to the occasion and do what’s asked of you,” the outfielder said. Brandon Nimmo. “Those guys have done it. Everybody’s seen how they’ve pitched. There’s so much confidence there.
“He’s helped us all year.”
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2. The lineup “opened the floodgates”
It’s hard to argue that any offense can compete toe-to-toe with the Dodgers, who scored 30 runs in the first four games of this series, and added six more in a loss in Game 5. Even without a Freddie Freeman healthy, Los Angeles has done a lot of damage. But so have the Mets, especially recently.
The Mets view Game 4 as a turning point. They scored only twice in a crushing loss, but had 13 runners reach base. Then in Game 5, they launched a 14-hit attack and scored 12 runs.
“We’re able to put together games like this, especially when from one to nine, we’re functioning, we’re not lurking,” Mendoza said.
That could be more than manager speak. For one thing, the bottom of the Mets order is starting to do some damage. The receiver Francisco Alvarezwho has batted ninth in every game of this series, credits a conversation he had with Starling Marte like a confidence boost.
“He came to see me and said, ‘Hey, be happy,'” Alvarez recalled. “‘Play your game. Don’t try to do too much.’ But what Mars is really saying is that he doesn’t talk too much, and I feel like he spoke to me from the heart, and I appreciate that he did.”
Alvarez has four of his last five games in the series, while Marte has also been on fire. Marte, who batted sixth in Game 5, has nine hits in his last four games after going 0 for 4 in Game 1. On Friday, the Mets’ batting order seemed as long as the Dodgers’.
“Preventing your starters from going deep in games and getting to your bullpen, that’s huge, especially in such a marathon series,” Alonso said. “And as an offense, that doesn’t happen if you don’t have quality at-bats. We’re getting them now.”
Nimmo said, “We open the floodgates.”
3. They have “fairy tale style things”
The ‘Meme Team,’ as some like to call the Mets, doesn’t mind the corniness of looking to ‘Grimace’ or a lucky pumpkin for inspiration. It works for them. Some teams exude a formal attitude when they get to work, while others let themselves go. New York fits perfectly into the latter category.
“We’re a fucking zoo here,” Martinez said. “Would we be the Mets if we weren’t?”
No one embodies that fun – and that faith – more than Pete Alonso. The longtime Mets member might be in his final days with the team – he’s a free agent after this season – but he won’t let that distract him. In fact, it has kept him grounded and motivated, seeking to sustain this dream season for as long as possible.
“This is what we all live and play for,” Alonso said. “This is wonderful. And I think all of us are enjoying the moment and looking to take advantage of the opportunities.”
“It’s a fairy tale thing.”
Alonso arrived in Los Angeles with the team’s playoff squash intact, which the slugger seems more interested in talking about than his game-changing home runs this postseason. They take special care of her.
“White glove service,” Alonso told ESPN with a big smile. “The pumpkin is cared for almost as well as the Stanley Cup.”
Alonso keeps the pumpkin in his luggage, but carries it carefully from the plane to the hotel, from the hotel to the bus, from the bus to the locker room.
“On the way I took her back to the hotel because I don’t want any member of the club or anyone to touch her,” Alonso explained. “She stays safe every day.”
Pumpkins, mascots and ‘OMG’ signs won’t be in the batter’s box when the first pitch is thrown. Game 6. But for the Mets, these things are part of who they are. Playing like this, with an unbreakable spirit even when their season is almost always on the line, creates a winning atmosphere. Heading into two win-or-go-home games, New York is banking on it.
“It’s something you learn from being here for a while,” Nimmo said. “You learn not to panic. If there’s a team that can do it, it’s us. We’ve played with our backs against the wall all year. We’ve risen to the occasion. Some might say we’re at our best in this moment.”
