The Mets hold a narrow one-game lead over the Braves in the NL East, and Joe Benigno says the team's hopes of reaching their first World Series since 2015 hangs on finishing the job in the division.
Joe B was relieved to see manager Buck Showalter showing more urgency of late, which he told Evan Roberts during Saturday's show was an absolute necessity to manage like the team's pennant hopes rely on securing the division title.
"They weren't really putting enough stock in winning this division," Joe said. "They have to win this division. You can say whatever you want, you can still make the playoffs, I understand, but if you have to play a Wild Card series, and even if you win that, you have to play the Dodgers in the second round.
"They're never getting to the World series."
Not only would a Wild Card berth mean facing the juggernaut Dodgers in the NLDS, but it would likely mean facing them with a scrambled pitching staff after having to navigate the new three-game Wild Card round.
"They have to be able to line up their pitching," Joe said. "You don't need any extra starts from [Max] Scherzer and [Jacob] deGrom, having to pitch in that two-out-of-three crapshoot."
If the season ended today, the Mets would avoid that and await the winner of the Padres and Cardinals. But if the Braves take the division, New York would have to win a best of three against the Phillies at Citi Field to earn a date with Los Angeles.
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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