NEW YORK, NY – Somewhere in the baseball universe, a scientist is studying the 2026 Mets with the same fascination normally reserved for volcanoes and deep-sea squid – which is little. But what these Metsies are doing over the last 10 days makes absolutely no sense. They are defying science!
The Mets are winning more than they’re losing. On the road, no less.
This despite a lineup that often resembles a who’s who of 1978 Mets’ bench players. Half the batting order is hitting somewhere in the .200 range, where every at-bat feels like a scratch-off ticket with disappointing results. Yet somehow, this patchwork operation keeps stumbling into victories like a guy leaving Belmont Park with rent money after betting random horse names. I am looking at you, JG Clancy.
Francisco Lindor, Luis Robert Jr., Jorge Polanco, Ronny Mauricio, A.J. Minter and Kodai Senga are all injured. At least two of them suck, though.
Soto is leading off because he’s the only one that can drive him in – via a homer. The bullpen has managed to hold games together with duct tape, caffeine, and the collective anxiety of Queens. But the real mystery is how the Mets are surviving shaky starting pitching while playing away from Citi Field. Speaking of which – why can’t Mark Vientos hit at home?! Here’s an idea, only play him on the road, inflate his stats and trade him at a somewhat elevated value! Include him a rumored Freddy Peralta trade.
ANY WHO, the Mets keep hanging around games long enough for somebody to poke a two-out RBI single through the right side and suddenly Keith Hernandez is talking about “winning baseball” – albeit in the 10th inning in Arizona when all of New York is asleep or at a bar.
Nobody is confusing this club with the ‘86 Mets. But wins count the same in the standings, even if they arrive in the emotional wreckage for fans.
Meanwhile, across town…
The Knicks are handling the 76ers in a playoff series that comes with one giant disclaimer label: Joel Embiid is held together with athletic tape and prayer.
The Knicks deserve credit, though. Jalen Brunson has been stellar and the team is playing with toughness that New Yorkers appreciate – and haven’t seen since Ewing, Oakley and Mason. But before anybody starts mapping out a championship parade down the Canyon of Heroes, it’s fair to point out that beating a compromised Embiid isn’t exactly the same as toppling a fully operational contender.
A healthy playoff opponent changes everything. Rotations tighten. Defensive flaws get exposed. Possessions become brutal little street fights. We still don’t fully know how Mike Brown & Co will respond when the other side has its superstar functioning at full power.
Still, in these parts, you don’t apologize for wins. You just stack them, grin nervously, and wait for the next crisis.
