ST. LOUIS — The math is against them, but the Mets aren’t dead.
What they desperately need is a winning streak while inflicting damage when possible on their competition for the NL’s second wild card. So, yes, this three-game series that begins Tuesday against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium screams “important.”
The opportunity is there for the Mets to make headway in a crowded race. On the flip side, if the Mets regress — they trail the Cardinals by 4 ½ games for the coveted second spot — their season might be over.
Two straight victories sparked by Yoenis Cespedes’ bat to conclude their four-game series in San Francisco at least allowed the Mets to dream about bigger things. That dream had been fading after manager Terry Collins’ crew began this monster road trip with four losses in five games.
“We’re going to lose [Neil] Walker for a couple of days, but we’re going in there healthy,” Collins said. “We weren’t sure that was going to happen 10 days ago. We didn’t know what kind of lineup we were going to have, but we’re going in there healthy and we’ve got to go play.”
Walker left the team following Sunday’s game to begin a paternity leave — his wife, Niki. was scheduled to be induced on Monday and give birth in Pittsburgh to the couple’s first child — but Cespedes’ return from the disabled list has bolstered a team in need of a jolt.
Cespedes blasted three homers in the final two games of the series in San Francisco, including a two-run blast Sunday that gave the Mets their only runs in a 2-0 victory.
Realistically, the Mets (62-62) probably need to finish somewhere in the 25-13 neighborhood over the final 38 games just to have a shot at the second wild card. The Marlins and Pirates, who stand between the Cardinals and Mets, will be interested observers this week.
“The races in these games are confusing because you feel like at 4 ½ games, if you are going to make up on the leader, there are a few other teams doing the same thing,” Kelly Johnson said. “So it kind of feels sometimes like it’s hard to make up ground, but playing teams that are direct competition certainly amplifies it.”
The Cardinals have been besieged by injuries — Matt Holliday and Matt Adams were the latest additions to the DL, joining Aledmys Diaz, among others — but have won seven of 10 to build a 1 ½-game lead on the Marlins for the second wild card. The Cards are a 1 ¹/₂ games behind the Giants for the first wild card.
“The Cardinals have dealt with some stuff themselves,” Johnson said. “They’ve had some injuries and hard luck and all that and they have battled, and always seem to do what they do. The Cardinals always seem to find a way to win games.
“I think that is something every team is trying to figure out, is how to be as consistent and persevere as much as they do. They definitely set a standard, them and the Giants the last few years.”
Jon Niese and Seth Lugo are scheduled to start two of the three games in the series, putting the focus on a Mets rotation that has been hammered by injuries this season. The latest ailment is Steven Matz’s rotator cuff inflammation that has the lefty headed to the DL.
“When we left spring training we liked our rotation,” Collins said. “OK, we’ve had some dings in it, but Jake [deGrom], Noah [Syndergaard], Bart [Colon], this is the time of year they’ve got to step up and give us the innings.”