Mets reach playoffs, beat Braves to cap comeback from 22-33 start

ATLANTA (AP) — Four months after falling 11 games under .500, the New York Mets earned a playoff spot a day after the regular season was supposed to end.

With a thrilling 8-7 win at Atlanta in the opener of a makeup doubleheader on Monday behind Francisco Lindor's ninth-inning homer, the Mets advanced to a best-of-three NL Wild Card Series starting Tuesday at Milwaukee.

“Everybody had us out, even before the year started, and here we are, man,” rookie manager Carlos Mendoza said.

New York lost the nightcap 3-0, but it hardly mattered. Pete Alonso and the Mets had already locked up the 11th postseason berth in team history.

“We’re a franchise that hasn’t had enough of these moments,” first-year president of baseball operations David Stearns said during the champagne party in the clubhouse following the second game. “We’ve got more work to do. I don’t think anyone in here is satisfied with just one celebration.”

New York overcame an 0-5 start to earn an unexpected trip to the postseason. To punch their ticket, the Mets rebounded from deficits of 3-0 in the eighth inning and 7-6 in the ninth to beat the Braves in Monday's opener. And the big hit was by Lindor, who returned Friday from a back injury that had sidelined him since Sept. 15.

“In slow motion it felt like,” Lindor said when asked about the homer. “Emotion. Emotion. It felt like I got the pitch that I wanted. And you never know if the ball is going to go out or not but I feel like I got it 100%. We’re one step closer. Now we’ve got to finish it. Finish, finish, finish.”

Asked what he was thinking when he rounded the bases, Lindor said: “My back hurts. I’m tired. I know how good Atlanta is.”

New York had lost 77 straight games when trailing by three runs in eighth inning or later since May 17, 2023.

“I’ve never seen a game like that. It was just a total rollercoaster,” owner Steve Cohen said, “I had tears in my eyes when we went ahead and then I was in shock when we fell behind. And then Francisco, just a big-boy moment, rises to the occasion. I mean, he must have dreamt of that as a kid.”

It was a throwback to 1973, when the Mets also clinched a playoff spot on the day after the season was supposed to finish. Back then, they beat the Chicago Cubs 6-4 to secure the NL East title.

“These are special moments. You've got to enjoy these moments," said Stearns, who grew up a Mets fan in New York City. “This is the standard of where we should be.”

This year, a 10-3 loss to the Dodgers on May 29 completed a three-game Los Angeles sweep at Citi Field by a combined 18-5. New York dropped to 22-33 in its first season under Mendoza and was six games out of the last wild-card berth and needing to overcome seven teams.

Lindor called a players' only meeting. As players explained it, the Mets aired some issues in the clubhouse that day and committed themselves to positivity, effective preparation and a team-first approach dedicated to helping each other and winning games.

"We just opened the floor and talked about ways we can turn it around,” outfielder Brandon Nimmo said then. “Just felt like a boiling-over point.”

Since then, with Lindor leading the charge, they have the best record in the majors at 67-40. They have outscored opponents 541-433.

“It’s been an uphill fight,” Lindor said. “We put ourselves in a big hole and we kept climbing and kept climbing. We kept our shoulders above water. After the All-Star break, you know, we never believed that we were drowning.”

One of New York's biggest concerns going into the Wild Card Series is the availability of closer Edwin Díaz, who got the win in the doubleheader opener. The right-hander has thrown 66 pitches over the past two days.

But the Mets haven't been deterred all season.

“Nobody thought back in April outside of this clubhouse that we were going to make the playoffs, that we had any shot,” Nimmo said. “We were able to go out and go through really, really tough times and find ourselves on the other side and pull ourselves up and really rally together and have each other’s backs and be able to culminate in this.”

Baseball's biggest spenders since Cohen bought the team ahead of the 2021 season, the Mets reached the playoffs in 2022 only to lose a three-game Wild Card Series to San Diego. The Mets sank to 75-87 last year, when they had a record $319.5 million payroll and were assessed a record $100.8 million luxury tax.

They began this year as the top spender again at a projected $321 million, including $70 million in payments to teams covering salaries of traded players Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander and James McCann. Their projected luxury tax was $83 million.

After the win in the doubleheader opener, Cohen posted on X: “Have you ever seen a game like that? I am so proud of this team. Met fans, go out and celebrate.”

“This was such a massive group effort,” Alonso said. “We earned it.”

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB

A New York Mets. player smokes a cigar in the locker room after clinching a playoff berth with a victory in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor celebrates in the locker room after clinching a playoff berth with a victory in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

The New York Mets celebrate in the locker room after clinching a playoff berth with a victory in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

The New York Mets celebrate in the locker room after clinching a playoff berth with a victory in the first game of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

The New York Mets celebrate in the locker room after clinching a playoff berth with a victory in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

The New York Mets celebrate in the locker room after clinching a playoff berth with a victory in the first game of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

The New York Mets celebrate in the locker room after clinching a playoff berth with a victory in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

The New York Mets celebrate in the locker room after clinching a playoff berth with a victory in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

CORRECTS BY REMOVING WILD CARD REFERENCE - The New York Mets celebrate in the locker room after clinching a playoff berth with a victory in the first game of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

CORRECTS BY REMOVING WILD CARD REFERENCE - The New York Mets celebrate in the locker room after clinching a playoff berth with a victory in the first game of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets' Francisco Lindor celebrates in the dugout after scoring in the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

A fan dances in the stands during a rally in the eighth inning of a baseball game between the New York Mets and the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets' Mark Vientos celebrates in the dugout after scoring in the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets pitcher Edwin Díaz, center, celebrates with teammates after winning the game in the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets owner, Steve Cohen, right, high fives Luisangel Acuña in the dugout after winning the game in the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets' Francisco Lindor, left, Jose Iglesias, left center, David Peterson, right center, and Brandon Nimmo, right, celebrate in the dugout after taking the lead in the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets' Francisco Lindor prepares to swing in the third inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets' Francisco Lindor checks his swing in the third inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor throws to first base in the third inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

ATLANTA (AP) — A final day that wasn't on the schedule and won't soon be forgotten.

An improbable comeback by the New York Mets in the opening game of a makeup doubleheader to secure their playoff berth. A gritty recovery by the Atlanta Braves in the nightcap, stamping their postseason ticket as well.

And all the Arizona Diamondbacks could do was watch hopelessly from the desert, their hopes snuffed out by two games on the other side of the country.

“You’re just focused on getting into the postseason,” said Braves first baseman Matt Olson, soaked in champagne as he celebrated a 3-0 win in the last game of the regular season. “Whatever it took. If we had to play four games today, we would have done it.”

The regular season went to extra innings after the Mets and Braves had a pair of games rained out last week by Hurricane Helene. They controlled their own fates, with each holding a tiebreaker edge over the defending NL champion Diamondbacks.

Arizona needed one team to sweep, so they were pulling for the Mets after they overcame deficits of 3-0 in the eighth inning and 7-6 in the ninth to win the opener 8-7, going ahead for good on Francisco Lindor’s two-run homer.

"An instant classic game,” said Brandon Nimmo, whose two-run homer capped a six-run eighth.

The Braves, to their credit, bounced back to get the win they had to have. Even after ace Chris Sale was scratched because of back spasms, journeyman Grant Holmes stepped in to lead off a three-hitter spread among six pitchers.

At the end, in the perfect capper to a wacky day, there were champagne-spraying celebrations in both clubhouses at Truist Park.

Holmes found out he was starting about a half-hour before the first pitch.

“I was about to go get some food,” said the 28-year-old Holmes, who finally made it to the big leagues this year after a decade in the minors. "They came up to me and said, ‘Hey, you’re going to start this one off today.’ And I was like, ‘Oh, OK, here we go.’”

With their postseason berth locked up, the Mets added left-hander Joey Lucchesi to the roster to start the second game. The 31-year-old left-hander spent most of the season at Triple-A Syracuse, giving up five runs in 4 1/3 innings in his lone big league appearance before Monday,

He looked like an ace against the Braves, who might’ve still been a bit shellshocked after the way they lost the opener. Lucchesi (0-2) allowed just three hits, including a run-scoring single to Gio Urshela, in a six-inning, 111-pitch outing.

But Marcell Ozuna gave the Braves some breathing room with a two-run single in the seventh. Daysbel Hernandez (3-0) earned the win and Raisel Iglesias finished it off for his 34th save in 37 chances.

The Braves also got a scoreless inning from starter Reynaldo López, who had pitched six innings just two days earlier.

“I'm so proud of all those guys,” Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said. “It takes the whole building to make something like this happen.”

The Mets were already in party mode after Lindor’s 33rd homer.

Trailing 3-0, with just three singles through seven innings against rookie Spencer Schwellenbach, New York's offense came to life in the eighth.

The Mets surged ahead with their six-run outburst. The Braves stormed back with four runs in the bottom half, as Ozzie Albies delivered a bases-loaded double with two outs for a 7-6 lead — giving him five RBIs in the game after a two-run homer in the third.

But New York delivered the final blow with Lindor's drive into the Braves bullpen off Pierce Johnson (7-5).

“That was one of the craziest games I’ve ever been a part of,” said Carlos Mendoza, the Mets rookie manager. “Just the meaning of it. Coming back in the game and then losing the lead and then coming back again in the ninth. It was unbelievable, like you should write a book.”

Edwin Díaz (6-4) earned the win with a season-high 40 pitches despite giving up Albies’ go-ahead hit, which came after the Mets closer failed to cover first on a play that allowed Jarred Kelenic to reach on a two-out infield hit.

Díaz demanded to return to the mound for the ninth.

“I don’t care what you say, I’m going back out,” he told Mendoza.

New York had lost 77 straight games when trailing by three runs in eighth inning or later since May 17, 2023. With that streak snapped, Díaz slammed his glove to the ground and the Mets celebrated their 11th postseason berth in 63 seasons, the last coming in 2022.

“I’ve never seen a game like that,” Mets owner Steve Cohen said.

Or a final day like that.

SALE’S STATUS

Atlanta had been holding back Sale since his scheduled start last week was rained out, saying they wanted to use him in an elimination game.

But the left-hander wasn’t able to pitch because of back spasms, which Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos said only cropped up after a throwing session Sunday but Snitker conceded had been an issue for some time.

“He’s had it off and on all year,” Snitker said. “Everybody in that room’s got aches and pains at this time of year."

The Braves aren't sure if Sale will be able to pitch in the playoffs.

UP NEXT

Mets: Head back to Milwaukee, where they just played a weekend series, for the best-of-three Wild Card Series that begins Tuesday.

Braves: Were heading to the airport for the four-hour flight to San Diego, where their Wild Card Series also starts Tuesday.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Atlanta Braves catcher Sean Murphy celebrates in the locker room after clinching a wild-card playoff berth after the second baseball game of a doubleheader against the New York Mets, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

Atlanta Braves players celebrate in the locker room after clinching a wild-card playoff berth after the second baseball game of a doubleheader against the New York Mets, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

The Atlanta Braves celebrate in the locker room after clinching a wild-card playoff berth after the second baseball game of a doubleheader against the New York Mets, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

Atlanta Braves pitcher Daysbel Hernández celebrates in the locker room after clinching a wild-card playoff berth after the second baseball game of a doubleheader against the New York Mets, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

The New York Mets celebrate in the locker room after clinching a playoff berth with a victory in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

The New York Mets celebrate in the locker room after clinching a playoff berth with a victory in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

Atlanta Braves' Travis d'Arnaud, left, Orlando Arcia, center, and Ramón Laureano, right, celebrate after scoring in the eighth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets owner, Steve Cohen, right, high fives Luisangel Acuña in the dugout after winning the game in the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets pitcher Edwin Díaz, center, celebrates with teammates after winning the game in the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets' Francisco Lindor, left, and Starling Marte, center, celebrate at home plate after scoring in the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

Atlanta Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies throws out New York Mets' Jose Iglesias at first base in the sixth inning of a baseball game, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets second baseman Jose Iglesias, right, tags second base and throws to first before Atlanta Braves' Ozzie Albies, left, can slide into the bag in the fifth inning of a baseball game, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

Atlanta Braves' Ramon Laureano, center, celebrates with teammates in the dugout after hitting a solo home run to centerfield in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

Atlanta Braves' Marcell Ozuna waits for the pitch in the fifth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets pitcher Huascar Brazoban throws in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

Atlanta Braves' Ramon Laureano, behind, celebrates with Atlanta Braves Orlando Arcia, front, in the dugout after hitting a solo home run to centerfield in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

Atlanta Braves' Ramon Laureano hits a home run to center field in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets' Francisco Lindor prepares to swing in the third inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets fans await their turn to get autographs before the start of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

Bally reporter, Hanna Yates, broadcasts her pregame with fans standing behind her waiting for autographs before the start of a baseball game between the New York Mets and the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets pitcher Tylor Megill throws in the first inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

Atlanta Braves' Ozzie Albies, left, gestures to the crowd while stepping on home plate after hitting a two-run home run in the third inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets' Tyrone Taylor steal second base before Atlanta Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies, top, can tag him in the third inning of a baseball game, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

New York Mets owner Steve Cohen, right, poses with a fan for a photo before the start of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

Atlanta Braves pitcher Spencer Schwellenbach throws in the first inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

Atlanta Braves fans await for the start of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

Atlanta Braves' Ozzie Albies prepares to tag third base after hitting a two-run home run in the third inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)

Atlanta Braves pitcher Spencer Schwellenbach throws in the first inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)