Until the injury replacements, the New York Mets have one All-Star. And that All-Star is Pete Alonso.
Were Francisco Lindor and Brandon Nimmo snubbed from the All-Star game?
Host Ryan Finkelstein breaks down why Alonso was chosen and how getting him to participate in the Home Run Derby may have been why he was selected over Christian Walker.
Also, did CJ Abrams deserve a spot over Lindor and will he end up replacing Mookie Betts anyway?
Did Nimmo get robbed of his chance to become a first-time All-Star?
Finally, the Mets won a thrilling game over the Pirates on Sunday, leading into the final week before the All-Star break.
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[MUSIC PLAYING] It's the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Did Pete Alonso only make the All-Star game because they wanted him in the home run derby? I'll talk about that in a great Mets win on today's show. You are locked on Mets, your daily New York Mets podcast. Part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Hello to all you amazing Mets fans. You're listening to Lockdown. Mets, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Thank you for making Lockdown Mets your first listen every day. Lockdown Mets is free and available on all platforms, including YouTube. On the show today, All-Star results are in. Who made the team? Who did not? I'll talk through all of that in the first segment. Then in the second segment, we'll go through the game on Sunday, a very thrilling Mets win as they gradually lost the late lead and then came on back and held on to win it. So we'll talk about that. Then in the final segment, we will look at the road ahead this week last week before the All-Star break. Can the Mets really create some separation in this wildcard race? We'll go through it all first, though. I'm your host, Ryan Ficklestein. If you want to find any of my work, follow me on X at Ficklestein Ryan. You can also find somebody writing at justbaseball.com where I work for the managing editor. Today's episode of Lockdown Mets is brought to you by a tax network, USA. Did you know that it's never too late to resolve your tax issues with the IRS? Don't wait. Reduce your tax debt and get help from a team of licensed tax professionals by calling 1-800-549-1000 or visit tnusa.com/lockdown. And the Mets had a thrilling victory over the pirates that I will discuss in the next segment. But I had to open the show today on the All-Star news, which is that Pete Alonzo has made the All-Star team while Francisco Endor and Brendan Imo were snut. And I was heated when I first learned this news, because I did not even register the possibility that Alonzo would make the All-Star team, which shame on me, because this is his fourth selection and fourth out of five possible chances to be an All-Star. The only year that he did not was 2021, where his first half numbers were worse than what he's done this year. He's had a good season. Don't get me wrong. 18 home runs. He's getting close to 50 RBIs. It has not been a bad year for Alonzo. But he did not deserve to make this team, particularly over the two Mets that we were all thinking we're going to make it in Lindor and Nimmo, and the guy whose spot he took in Christian Walker. And so now Majorly Baseball has put me in this weird position where I'm going to argue against a guy that I love and Peter Alonzo to make the All-Star team. And look, Francisco Lindor, Carlos Mendoza, Brandon Nimmo. They all said the right thing. We're happy for Pete. He deserves it. And you can't say anything else about your team. And I wouldn't expect them to. But I'm here to tell you that Peter Alonzo doesn't deserve to be in the All-Star game this year. And the home run derby absolutely played into his inclusion in this event. They're in both events, really. So they decided that they wanted the biggest star on the Mets to be there in Arlington. And that's Majorly Baseball's prerogative, right? I'm sure they know from whatever metrics that Peter Alonzo is going to increase the viewership of the home run derby. And funny enough, just before they make the decision, there is a story that went out from the New York Post on Saturday. And I link it in my story at just Facebook because I wrote about this entire situation. And in the story, Peter Alonzo says, quote, if I'm selected to the All-Star team, that I'm definitely open to doing it, the home run derby. Day later, he's selected to the All-Star team and he announces that he is going to be part of the home run derby. And the home run derby is better at Peter Alonzo in it. But we've seen it four times already. This will be the fifth time. I'm happy Alonzo's there. But what I've been even more happy if Brandon Nimmo got his first All-Star appearance and maybe they did a passing of the torch and they said, you know what? Let's still get that New York market involved. And let's get them really excited for who's going to be in this derby. Let's give Mark Vientos a chance to compete. 'Cause if you asked me who would I'd rather seen the home run derby, a guy in Alonzo who I've seen it time and again, or Mark Vientos for the first time on the big stage, I would prefer to see Vientos. Now, general baseball fans aren't going to agree with that 'cause Peter Alonzo is as fun in home in derbies as anyone. Whether it's vibing out to mob deep as he's winning the derby or watching him do his squat routine before he actually goes on to hit. I mean, he's electric. And I will be completely all in on watching Alonzo in the derby and even in the All-Star game. But majorly baseball did not make the right decision here. And I'm not gonna just focus on Lindor and Nimmo and why they were snubbed. I'm gonna start on Christian Walker, the first baseman for the Arizona Diamondbacks. And I get it, Christian Walker is not the sexy name. Who would the casual baseball fan know, Peter Alonzo or Christian Walker? Obviously, it's Peter Alonzo. But if you look at the stats this year, Christian Walker doesn't just have him in war because he's a better defensive first baseman. He hasn't been every single offensive statistic. And again, I hate to be upset about this and be advocating against the men. But come on, look at the numbers and tell me that Peter Alonzo deserves it over Christian Walker. Who has more home runs this year? Christian Walker's at 22 Alonzo's at 18. This is all before the game today, but Pete didn't homer. And I don't know what happened with Christian Walker with the Diamondbacks, but his restats going into play on Sunday. So Walker has him in home runs. He's got significantly more RBIs, 64 compared to 48. He's got him across the board in this lash line, two six day batting average compared to Pete at 243, 341 on base compared to Pete at 325. 516 slug compared to Pete at 467. He's got an 857 OPS compared to Pete at 792. And then waiter runs Creative Plus. That's an offensive stat measuring hitters on a league average of 100. That's park adjusted as well. So Walker doesn't get any extra boost 'cause he's playing in a hitter's friendly ballpark. If anything, it takes away from him a little bit. He's got a 130 WRC plus Alonzo 126. So he's even been better in that stat. And then if you do go to war, 2.9 wins above replacement for Walker, 1.2 for Pete Alonzo. Pete Alonzo right now, as presently constructed, is the only met on this roster for the National League. Where's Pete Alonzo rank among Mets this year in wins above replacement? Is he first? No, that's Lindor. Is he second? No, that's Nemo. Is he third, fourth or fifth? No, that's Mark Vientos Francisco Alvarez and Janie Martinez. Based on wins above replacement, Pete Alonzo has been the sixth most valuable met tie with Harrison Bader. And Harrison Bader had a better game today. I would not be surprised at all if that bumped Pete down to the seventh most valuable met this year. And Sean Manai is at 1.2 prior to his start today. He had a great start. So all of a sudden the eighth most valuable met is the only one that'll be there at the All-Star game. Now granted, Francisco Lindor probably replaces Mookie Betts on this roster. I think that's gonna happen. It could still be William Thomas. I wouldn't completely write off that possibility. But the fact that Ezekiel Tovar did not make it and Ryan McMahon did. I don't believe Tovar's gonna make it. I don't think Hayson Kim's gonna make it. So really it comes down to Lindor or a Thomas. And I think Lindor will get on when Betts is removed. So a right, a wrong will be righted there. But even further than that, I was more frustrated about this when it happened. Lindor not making it because I've watched him all year. You guys have this well and particularly lately, he has been clutch. He's the reason the Mets were able to win that game on Sunday. He's been the Mets best player. So he deserves to represent them in the All-Star game. With that said, CJ Abrams is pretty good. Okay, you look at wins of a replacement. Lindor is gotten by over a win and that's because of the defense. Lindor eight outs above average defensively. Abrams has been one of the top three worst defenders in baseball and minus 11 outs above average. But you look at the offensive stats. Abrams 280 average, Lindor 244. Abrams story 50 on base, Lindor 310. Abrams, 506 slug, Lindor 441. Home runs, they're close, Lindor 15, Abrams 14. RBIs, so it's prior to the game today. So I guess he's up to what? 45 instead of 43 that I have in the article, Abrams 46. Lindor's got him in stolen bases, 16 to 14. OPS, Abrams hasn't by 100 points. Again, this was prior to the game today. So that might have changed a little bit, but Abrams 856 OPS. WRC plus 138 for Abrams compared to Lindor at 116 again, will be adjusted after three for four day from Lindor with a walk. Bottom line, Abrams has had a really good offensive season and he deserves to be the lone representative for the Nationals. So I'm less mad about that. And again, I think ultimately Lindor is gonna make it. Brandon Nimmo could make it as well. Fernando T's Jr. is unlikely to play in the all-star game. He has been voted a starter if I'm not mistaken. And let me check just to confirm that. Yeah, he's a starter along with Jerksen Pro far as teammate in Christian Yellich. So that's gonna clear spot. I imagine Tasker Hernandez fills in in the starting lineup you would think only because he's got the lead among outfielders and home runs and RBIs. And the other guys that are reserves are Jackson Merrill, Elliot Ramos and Brian Reynolds. So you look at those guys and you compare them to Brandon Nimmo. And again, this is where the article has cooled me off a little bit because there is a case to be made for all the guys that got in over Nimmo. If you look at Ramos, for example, he's played in less games, only 53 games, but he's hitting 300, 372 one base, 522 slug, has 12 home runs in 53 games and 40 RBIs. He's been very good. He has been nearly as valuable as Nimmo when it comes to war. He's half a win behind, but has played, was it 30, about 30 less games? So I get Ramos being on there, even though they have Logan Webb as an all-star as well. So they didn't have to put Ramos on the team, but I understand why he did get the not. Again, I mentioned Tasker Hernandez has home runs and RBIs as far as leading among NL outfielders. So that makes sense, even though you can absolutely make the case because of the defensive component and the fact that Nimmo has been better based on WRC+ than Tasker, that he deserves it. I get why Tasker Hernandez is on this team. The spot that I had the biggest gripe with is probably Brian Reynolds. Brian Reynolds has a slightly worse WRC+ than Nimmo. He's also almost a win behind in wins above replacement. So I think Nimmo should have got it, but Reynolds has him in home runs and slightly, and RBIs wouldn't him get one RBI in the game today. So yes, slightly, they're pretty much even, Nimmo has them installing bases. It's close. I guess you can make the case that Brian Reynolds is the bigger star. This is the second all-star appearance. Paul Skeens also is an all-star, so they didn't have to put him in there. I think what this really came down to, honestly, is for one justifying making penalons of the all-star over Christian Walker. And how you do that is you make it a lone representative. So you have a case for Lindor to not make it with the other short stops. You have a case to not include Nimmo with the other outfielders, and then okay, well, the messy and representative first base is a more wide open position. But they clearly put an inferior player this year in the game because Christian Walker has the better numbers across the board. He's never been an all-star. Guys, what, 33 years old? He deserves to get that not, because he has gone from a guy who was really struggling to establish himself in his big lead career to actually being a star level player in Arizona for the last three years, where he's been averaging 30 home runs and 90 plus RBIs this season. And this year, he's on pace for like 40 and 116. He should have been in the game. And Nimmo deserves to get his first all-star bit. Now again, injuries might just clear it up and the Mets might have three all-stars. That'd be awesome. And then I guess I won't be upset about this anymore. But to me, when it comes to the all-star voting, and look, you can't get too frustrated about this stuff, I understand, okay? But it just feels like Major League Baseball is prioritizing the TV package of what they're doing. And that's, it's a money business. I get it. But it didn't feel good to celebrate Piedalonso being an all-star this time. Because there was other more deserving Mets that should have been there. And then when you look at the League wide discussion, there was a far more deserving candidate at his position that might not make the team now. We'll see exactly how the rosters shaped themselves over this final week as players drop out, like bets, like to tease potentially. And that could open the door for Landor and Nemo. And there could be another injury that opens the door for Walker for all we know. Bryce Harper is hurt, although he's expected to come back this week. But again, it was just a weird set of emotions for me when the news was announced because I really didn't expect Piedalonso to get that recognition this year. And honestly, when it comes to the Home Run Derby as much as I am thrilled to see Pied go for a third crown to tie Ken Griffey Jr. as the only other player to ever have that many Derby wins. I would have preferred to see Marfientos in the event. Just me. But let's now focus to the great win the Mets had on Sunday and we'll push all the all-star conversations to a later date. So I'm gonna talk about the thrilling end of the game the Mets had against the Pirates in just a minute, first though, a word from our sponsors. Today's episode of Lockdown Mets is brought to you by prize picks. Prize picks is the easiest and most exciting way to play daily fantasy sports. 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(upbeat music) (upbeat music) If you want to stay up to date with all the latest in the roller sports, make sure you check out lockdown sports today, streaming 24/7 on YouTube. Now, Sunday was a crazy game for the New York Mets as they, in the last couple innings, took a lead, blew a lead and then grabbed the lead right back and held on to it to win. And when Diaz walked the tightrope, it was a thriller. And the Mets are all of a sudden showing us some different ways to win because during the stretch in June where they were so good, it was often just the offense bashing their way to victories. And that's amazing. And I do believe in this offensive ability to continue to do that and I hope they can on Monday here to close off a serious victory against the pirates, but you're not gonna always have 10 runs in the tank. Sometime your line is gonna go through some bad stretches. JD Martinez is not swinging a good bat right now. Peter Lobs has been going through it a little bit as well. You're just gonna have these periods where guys naturally cool off because it's really tough to hit. And we've seen that in this last week with the Mets, but finding a way to win these games is an encouraging sign for a team that very easily could be down in this series, three games to none. I mean, they could be down bad. They easily could have lost this game on Sunday, but they continue to show fight and grit. And also they're getting great starting pitching all the sun too because Sean Maniah was brilliant in this game. Six scoreless allowed two hits, walked three, struck out six, he already now down to 343. And with Alvarez behind the plate, I think it's like 135 or something crazy. He has really found it. He was only at 89 pitches through six. So he could have potentially gone out for the seventh. Instead, Mendoza in a tie game went to bullpen arms that he clearly trusts. And Carlos Mendoza's mind, he has a seventh eighth ninth inning for the first time probably all season. The seventh eighth ninth inning plan is Garrett to Nunez to Diaz. That's what the Mets are gonna roll with. And I was very surprised to see Garrett say through 26 pitches the day before. But here he comes out on the back-to-back. He has not been good on back-to-backs all year that they said on the broadcast. Yeah, right over five in those situations. So he comes out and he does not look good again. 10-pitch at Batica Brian Hayes just can't put him away. He ends up giving up a base hit. O'Neill Cruz comes up, same thing. Can't put him away. Throws just really uncompetitive splitters that Cruz is bailing him out on even swinging at and fowing him off. And the bat is prolonging and you're just expecting the worst. You're expecting Garrett to hang one and O'Neill Cruz to put one in the Allegheny and all of a sudden the ball game flips. Or actually at that point, when he flipped, it would have just gone swiftly into the pirates' hands when it comes to the momentum in a tie game. So Garrett against Cruz on the eighth pitch of the at bat finally throws a really good splitter that Cruz can't lay off of the exact bite that you want where it's over the heart of the plate and then it just drops. And Cruz swings through it, big strike out. Then he gets ready to let it to roll it over for a double play. Great turn by Iglesias Inlandor. The two of them up the middle together. It's just the thing of beauty to watch, honestly. And Jeff McNeill, we know you continues to struggle. Iglesias is taking that starting second base job because he brings you so much value in the field. Not to mention what he did in the ninth thing. We'll talk about that in a second. But really good defense across the board for the Mets. Marc Fientos made a diving catch. Harrison Bader made a diving catch. You just saw the entire team flash in the leather. And that's what you need to do in a game where no one scores until the eighth inning. Now the Mets got on the board first with two outs Lindor drew a walk and Brandon Nemo ripped a double to drive him in. I'd also like to acknowledge that in big spots in this game, it was Nemo Lindor that came through while all star penalonzo did not. Take that for what you will. So the Mets get a run. They're up one nothing. Danielle Nunez comes on for the eighth. And we haven't seen him in back to back so much. So what were you going to expect there? He gives up a lead off hit, gets a big strike yet, then gives up another hit. So two runners on, Nunez on the mound for one out. Brian Reynolds, now the all star is up. Danielle Nunez falls behind two in one, gets him to chase to even the count. Then throws another ball so it's a full count. And he gets him to chase for strike three. Massive strike yet. He didn't throw a single pitch in the zone there, but that's how you know that you have a really good pitch here when he doesn't have to throw a pitch in the zone and he can get swings. So Nunez gets that huge, huge strike yet and I thought they were going to stick with them. But instead, Carl Mendoza had already gotten that when Diaz's up and he went to his closer for a four out save. Now Diaz comes on and I trusted him at first. Walks the first guy stays on four pitches. Then gives up a base hit, which was a, you know, softly hit ground ball that ended up in the outfield, but it was a hit, all the same that gave the Pirates a two to one lead. And you just felt like the Mets were going to lose this game and be, you know, potentially in line to lose the series and they were not going to finish this first half strong. I was getting all of that with that one hit because it just felt like a repeat of bad habits, of the bullpen just coming up small and causing the Mets to lose the game. But the Mets, the line up had other ideas because the ninth inning was one of, if not the best series of a bats, I think we've seen all season when you consider the difference that this win ultimately makes to the Mets right now with where they're at in the season. The guy who was on the mound, which is a role this Chapman who isn't always great, particularly against the Mets, but he's still throwing a hundred and two, 103 miles per hour to these guys. It's not an easy at bat, even though he's not the Chapman of old. So he comes on, he's got to face Francisco Alvarez to start things out, gets him own to. And once again, we watched Francisco Alvarez not get himself out the way he would have last year. Hangs in there is able to just continue to either foul pitches off or have really good takes, gets into a full count, takes ball four, and that starts off the rally for the Mets. Harrison Bader has a great at bat as well, gets into a hitter's count at three and one, gets a fastball, fouls it off, gets another fastball, fouls it off. And finally on the third fastball, he's able to drive a line, drive into the outfield, give the Mets another base runner, extend the rally. And Mark Vientos came up. Now, Vientos had won a bat in his career against Chapman, it was a home run. Well, in this circumstance, Vientos strikes that, I don't think it was a bat at bat, but he kept the bat on his shoulder and struck out on a backdoor slider, good pitch by Chapman. It wasn't a horrible at bat, but a strike out all the same. And then you had Luis Torens come on. So Ben Gamel had pinch run for Alvarez. Jeff McNeil's spot was up. Mendoza did not trust McNeil in that spot, instead he goes to the hotter header by far in Torens. But it was one of the worst at bats that I've seen. I mean, definitely the worst at bat at the game, Torens didn't get the bat off his shoulder and he got some hitable pitches, particularly the last one, which was a fastball, and he just basically was expecting Torens to take on, he just threw one right by him. So two outs and who's up, Jose Iglesias. And one net bat from Candelita. So first pitch is a ball, then he fouls off two, so he's sitting in a one and two count, looks at a ball to even the count, fouls off another pitch to stay alive, looks at a third ball to put it into a full count, fouls off a pitch at 102.5 to hang in there. And then eventually takes a walk on another 102 mile prior fastball, and he was fired up and rightfully so. That put Lindor up with the bases loaded and Lindor delivered like the all star he should be. Get to hit to drive into, Nemo walked behind them, but JD Martinez got out, but the Mets had a lead again, three to two, and here comes that win Diaz for the ninth inning, because what was the alternative? You gonna throw Adam Alavino in a one run game? No, they had to keep Diaz in there, and luckily Diaz got the job done. Gets a strike out, gets a couple ground outs, and the Mets win the game. Huge confidence boost for Diaz to be able to come back in that spot and deliver the victory to the Mets. He obviously blew a save, but he got a win. And the lineup for the Abbas that they had against Chapman to just grind their way to a victory, it's massive because now you're in position to win a series, and if you don't, at least you didn't lose a series to the Pirates, because this has been a series where it has never felt comfortable for the Mets. So if they can find their way to win it, hats off to them, but even if they don't, I think they're in good position here at the final week before the All-Star break to hopefully win the last two series against the Nationals and the Rockies and put themselves in really good position, heading into that break and with the trade down line looming. So what I wanna talk about next here, the final game of this Pirates series and the week that lies ahead, the final week before the All-Star break, we're gonna preview what lies ahead. First though, a word from our sponsors. Today's episode's brought to you by Fain Duol. I love sports, I love them so much. I never want them to stop, but as the playoffs wind down, we just get fewer games down the summer and the sports aren't sports and like I want them to, but Fain Duol lets me keep the sports going whenever I want 'cause all I have to do is open up the app and dream up bets anytime that I'm in the mood. And this summer, Fain Duol's hooking up all customers with a boost or a bonus daily. That's right, there's something for everyone every day all summer long. So head over to Fain Duol.com/lockedon and start making the most out of your summer Fain Duol, official sports betting partner of Major League Baseball. You know we love talking stats here at Locked On Rockies. Here's one that's super simple to remember. Discover automatically doubles the cashback you've earned on your credit card at the end of your first year with cashback match. That means with Discover, you could turn $150 cashback to $300. That's right, you could put it towards some memorabilia you've had your eye on or treat yourself to a premium sports network. You earn and discover doubles. See terms at discover.com/creditcard. (upbeat music) If you're an everyday listener of this show, make sure you become a Locked On Mets insider. This is our text and service we get updates from me. Anytime's the news breaks on the Mets. You can also ask me questions anytime. You get the starting lineup graphic sent to your phone each day so you don't have to go on social media to see who's starting for the New York Mets. If you wanna be Locked On Mets insider, find the link in the episode description. We'll go to subtext.com/lockedonmets. Monday is gonna be an interesting game as Christian Scott will make his first MLB start on regular rest. We've talked a lot about Christian Scott this year and the need to have a six-man rotation when he's in the fold. Now, when Kodak's saying it comes back, that's gonna solve that 'cause the Mets are not gonna have a five-man rotation with Senga. So down the stretch this year, if Scott and Senga are both part of this rotation, everything is gonna be cool when it comes to this. But right now, the Mets have decided for this last stretch before the all-star break that they are sticking with the five-man rotation. Jose Budo has become a necessity in that bullpen. You can't have Tyler McGill make a start and I don't think they want Joey Lukasey to make a start. So this is Christian Scott's opportunity to show the brass with the Mets here that he can pitch on four days rest. Great opportunity for him. Do you look at the final week slate? Christian Scott is a two-star streamer. You play fantasy, I actually don't, but I am a manager editor for website where we do publish those articles. So that's why that popped into my head right there. But regardless, Christian Scott's gonna start twice this week. So you look at the road ahead, you're gonna get two starts from Christian. Scott two starts from Jose Quintana and one each from Luis Severino, David Peterson, and Sean Manaya. Mitch Keller's going for the Pirates. Tough matchup for the Mets, but who knows? Maybe going up against the best starter of this series, not named Paul Skeens. We can see the Mets lineup explode 'cause they haven't in some time. Maybe this is the game where you pile on a bunch of runs and it would be very much welcomed as the Mets bullpen is in dire straits right now because Garrett Nunez Diaz, they're all burned. I doubt you see any of them 'cause they all just pitch back to backs. I don't think any of them are gonna pitch three days in a row. So you don't have any of your high-level relievers available. That means maybe Adam Adavino is the de facto closer. You have Eric Orsey, who still yet to make his enemy debut available, but do they want him pitching in leverage? Adam Necessity maybe, but likely not. You have Jake Deakman, who's been a train wreck lately. And then you have Adrian Houser and Jose Budo, who I think are gonna play huge roles in this game. You hope Christian Scott gets through at least five, if not six. And then Adrian Houser probably comes on and you hope you can steal a couple innings there and see where you're at. Now if the Mets have a huge lead, you can let Houser maybe go three innings or something like that, really just eat up a lot of the end part of the game because that bullpen desperately needs it. Maybe you see the same from Budo. But I think the starting pitchers are going to decide this game. And I don't mean Mitch Keller and Christian Scott, although that's going to factor in a very large degree. I'm just talking about the Mets starting pitchers because it's going to be Scott and it's going to be the converted starters or converted relievers, I guess. And Houser and Budo are going to have to really carry the load, especially in a high leverage situation where he typically might not see them. They're going to be huge for the Mets in this game. So we'll see what they can do. I'm honestly happy though, you don't have to lose this game. The fact that they took two in Pittsburgh, when it looked like they were going to lose, particularly on Sunday, I feel great about whatever happens on Monday. And then you look at the rest of the week, three against the Nationals, three against the Rockies. And the National Series, that's going to be interesting because the Mets could bury Washington. They have a chance to, in that other series in DC, where they could have taken the first seven potentially against the Nationals for the year. Right now they've won five of the first seven matchups. This is an opportunity to put your competition away a little bit. They are already sort of clinging to the wildcard race. And they have every incentive to sell it this year's deadline. Jesse Winker, they should probably trade him. If Trevor Williams gets healthy, they should deal him. Kyle Finnegan, they're closer. They should probably deal him. And they can go across their roster and find all the pieces. Even Lane Thomas, you can make a case they should trade him. He's getting closer and closer to free agency. He's the guy that can get a lot for at this deadline because there's not a lot of players available. That's a team that I think would be more motivated to sell than ever considered buying. If they are close enough, they might just sit on their hands, but the Mets have to take advantage of this opportunity at home to win a series against the Nationals this week. And then you got the Rockets coming to town, one of the worst teams in baseball. So the Mets really need to take advantage of this final week of play. You don't have to win them all, but taking five games across this week would be huge and it really would. Obviously at least four, if they lost to the Pirates and won each of the next two series, I'd be good with that, but what happens if you do that? They're right now at 500, they lose on Monday, they'll be a game under. They go four or three down the stretch, they're gonna be at 500 at the All-Star break. And when you look at the wild cards, while the Mets are two games back sitting at 500, you have the Padres and the Cardinals that have created some separation because they are now consistently over 500. A lot of teams this year and they actually have just been up and down, up and down. These two teams have been stable lately, just consistently winning six out of 10, six out of 10, just doing everything they can to hold onto their place in the current position to be wild card teams. You're looking at the Padres are four games over, the Cardinals are five games over 500 right now. The Cardinals are minus 39 when it comes to their undifferentials, so I do think there's some smoke and mirrors there and they might be due to come back down to Earth. But these are also two teams that could be aggressive buyers at the deadline. So you wanna get as close to them as possible. If the Mets can have a really good last week here, they might just be rubbing shoulders with them even closer at this break. You wanna see this Mets team at three, four games over 500, that would be unbelievable. Right now they've just hung around this spot where they're over 500, back in 500, under 500 and they've been doing that. Let's see them take advantage of the schedule, really push forward. I think they have everything they need to actually do that. The bullpen is in a lot better shape. We've seen it in the last couple of games here where they've held onto leads or, you know, giving up but then been able to hold on ultimately. And the rotation is locked in. This lineup I think is due to have another hot stretch coming up here, especially when they get to some of those Rockies pitchers at the end of the week. So very important road ahead here for the Mets to do everything they can to get themselves well above 500 by this break. We'll see how they actually fair doing it. I'll be covering all of it throughout the week. I appreciate all of you who tuned in today's show. You're listening on the audio side. Follow, rate, and review wherever you get your podcasts. If you're watching on YouTube, hit that subscribe button. Wanna get to 9,000 subs by the all-star break and we are within 100. So please do me a favor, hit that red subscribe button. If you wanna find me on social, you can do so at Finklstein-Ryan. We're called the show at Lockdown Mets. Thank you for making Lockdown Mets. You're first listening to your first watch every day and after your second watch. Head over to YouTube and check out the first ever 24/7 treatment channel that covers everything in the world of sports. Talking about Lockdown Sports today with our local experts from each team and our league wide experts from each league. Find Lockdown Sports today. Show me 24/7 on YouTube and Amazon Fire TV. - A Prime members, you can listen to this Lockdown podcast and free on Amazon Music. 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