The end might be near. Or, the Mets can start a three-game winning streak Friday that would stun baseball fans from Hollis, Queens to the Hollywood Hills. The Dodgers have dominated in three of the four NLCS games thus far, outscoring New York 30-9 and pushing it to the brink of elimination, prompting Francisco Lindor to channel Tug McGraw.
“If you have no belief, you shouldn’t be here,” the shortstop said after Thursday’s Game 4 loss. “You gotta believe, you gotta fight for what we want. For what you want, you gotta fight for it. At the end of the day, it comes down to one day at a time and executing.”
Here are five storylines for Game 5 of the National League Championship Series.
Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
We hope the next game at Citi Field is Game 3 of the World Series, but even with a win Friday, this could be the Mets’ 2024 home finale. So, Motown legends, The Temptations, will be on hand to sing the national anthem and perform “My Girl” (Lindor’s walk-up song) before the first pitch, because of course. The stadium had a heck of a year, from seeing Jose Iglesias perform “OMG,” having a Grimace seat installed and welcoming a rally pimp and a hot dog-eating dog into its confines. If this is farewell, it should be fond. A win would be a lovely way to go out, too.
It’s been the story of the Mets’ season in so many ways. They went from eleven games below .500 in June to notching big wins over the last few weeks at Atlanta, at Milwaukee and way back on Monday in Los Angeles. Mark Vientos and Iglesias both started the year in the minors and turned into major contributors. In that same vein, look at the seasons Luis Severino, Sean Manaea, Jose Quintana and David Peterson had compared to a year ago. What a joy it’s been to see the pitchers writing each other’s numbers in eye black on their faces during the playoffs. Maybe they do it because they all see a little bit of themselves in each other, or because it’s cool and fun.
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If it feels like we have been through this before, it’s because we were 13 days ago. That was the last time free agent-to-be Pete Alonso was potentially playing his final game in a Met uniform. He hit the biggest home run of his career and sent the Mets to the NLDS. How about an encore?
Peterson gets the start, but how long does manager Carlos Mendoza stick with him? Is Kodai Senga the first arm out of the bullpen? Facing elimination, does Edwin Díaz get the ball early if the situation calls for it? And what about that lineup card?
Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
The Mets were 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position in Game 4 while the Dodgers were 6-for-15. This, according to our expert MMO analysis, was a critical factor in the game.
“We gotta come out,” Lindor said. “We gotta execute and we got to play the game better than they do. If we win (Friday) then we learn from it, move on.”
McGraw made “Ya Gotta Believe” famous in 1973. It remains a subject of debate whether another famous quote was said by manager Yogi Berra that season. Nonetheless, it applies now: “It ain’t over till it’s over.”
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