Weather makes forecasting tough for Mets braintrust
Mets manager Buck Showalter looks on from the dugout against the Marlins during an MLB game at Citi Field on Tuesday. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
Officially, the Mets weren’t thinking about Atlanta on Wednesday afternoon. They were looking to face Jesus Luzardo and the Marlins later that night, and at a chance at their 98th win – a feat they haven’t accomplished in 34 years. Buck Showalter stopped just shy of saying they needed to “take it one game at a time,” before begrudgingly allowing that fine, he’d probably have to talk about Atlanta after today.
“Don’t call me on the off day” to ask about them, he said, jokingly. “I’m about tonight, Luzardo and the Marlins.”
Unofficially, that’s bupkis.
Oh, sure – the Marlins game was as important as any as the Mets try to pry the NL East away from Atlanta, which entered the day tied with them with only seven games to go. But as Hurricane Ian barrels toward Georgia, the Mets Wednesday were forced to peel off the metaphorical blinders. Long preachers at the pulpit of “worry only about yourself,” the Mets are now faced with a forecast, a timeline and a potential playoff scenario that has made that all but impossible.
The three-game series against Atlanta, which begins Friday, could easily determine the fate of the division and, at the very least, a win there will guarantee the Mets clinch the tiebreaker. But Saturday looks destined for a washout, and rains are supposed to start as early as Friday night, meaning that there are already contingency plans in place.
According to a source, those plans don’t include using the mutual off day Thursday; instead, Friday’s game could be moved to the afternoon and, if Saturday’s game is scrapped, the two could play a split doubleheader Sunday. All of that is better than the third scenario: A game on Oct. 6, after the last day of the regular season – a situation where the loser could see themselves catapulted into a three-game wild card series beginning the very next day.
Already, the Mets are taking extra care with their taxi squad: Starling Marte seems no closer to returning from his broken finger, injuries happen, and they could need a 29th man in the event of a doubleheader. All of that is exacerbated by the fact that bad weather means flying someone in could be impossible. In other words, every decision, even minor ones, could have significant ramifications.
And until first pitch, a lot of it is up to the home team. You know, the one with a very vested interest in seeing the Mets fail.
“All that’s up to Atlanta,” Showalter said. “We don’t have much input in it at all – can’t you tell? We look at it through a Mets prism every day, what’s best for the Mets and our fans, That’s our priority and if someone doesn’t agree with it and they have say-so, you have to live with it. It’s not our home game.”
That’s a lot of what-ifs, especially with the way the Mets’ rotation is shaking out: If this were a typical three-game series, the Mets would have Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer and Chris Bassitt up against Atlanta. But they also have to look ahead – at a doubleheader, at an Oct. 6 game, or even a three-game wild card series ahead of the NLDS. That’s the worst-case scenario, and one that could mean that neither the Mets' aces would be available until at least Game 2 of the division series.
“Billy is on top of everything,” Showalter said of general manager Billy Eppler. “Almost to a fault. He’s got a lot of balls in the air and he’s handling them real well.”
The Mets better hope so. Because as much as the players have to play, Showalter and Eppler’s ability to plan for the unplannable could turn out to be the difference.
Laura Albanese is a reporter, feature writer and columnist covering local professional sports teams; she began at Newsday in 2007 as an intern.
