The Mets are down to their last six games, and the stretch run is less about October than it is about what comes next. With Monday the club’s final off day of the 2026 season, New York heads into a road trip through Texas and Washington with postseason hopes already gone and a long winter waiting on the other side.
Even with the disappointment settled in, there’s still plenty worth watching. Francisco Lindor is sitting on 299 career home runs after going deep twice against the New York Yankees on Sept. 12, and the Mets will spend the week hoping he can reach 300 before the season ends.
Pete Alonso already cleared that milestone at Citi Field last week, and Lindor now has one last shot to join him. The parks in Texas and Washington are not exactly known for being kind to hitters, so it may take a clean swing to get there.
If he does, he would become just the third shortstop ever to hit 300 homers while playing the position.
The Mets also have some practical goals left to chase. They have played better since the trade deadline and are trying to close with some momentum for 2027.
A strong week could even lift them past the Nationals and out of last place in the National League East for the first time since 2003. More importantly, the final record still matters.
At 71-85, New York needs two more wins to avoid finishing with 90 losses for the first time since 2017.
Draft position is part of the picture too. The Mets enter the week with the fifth-worst record in the league, and a top-six finish would give them a 51.1 percent chance to avoid having their pick drop 10 slots because of luxury tax penalties, according to Tankathon’s odds. That kind of outcome could mean extra bonus pool money for David Stearns to use in building out the farm system.
The first stop on the trip carries its own intrigue. New York visits the Rangers, who hold a one-game lead in the American League West with a week left.
Texas does not own the tiebreaker over Houston, which sits second, so a Mets win or two in Arlington could help knock the Rangers out of the playoffs. The series also brings Brandon Nimmo back into the picture for the first time since the Mets traded him to Texas over the winter for Marcus Semien.
Nimmo has done what he usually does, hitting .261 with 14 home runs, 61 RBI and a .732 OPS entering the week, but the Mets would surely enjoy keeping his new team out of the postseason.
On the mound, the Mets will go back to a five-man rotation after Monday’s off day. Sean Manaea will make a pair of starts with the final regular-season outings for the club’s young pitchers sandwiched around them. Nolan McLean and Zac Thornton are lined up for the last two games in Texas, while Christian Scott and Jonah Tong are set to pitch Friday and Saturday in Washington.
That makes the final week especially important for the next wave. McLean and Scott feel like the only sure bets for the 2027 rotation, so what Thornton and Tong do over these starts could matter a lot. The Mets did not shut down Scott or Thornton despite major jumps in innings, which is a little surprising, but those extra frames could help both pitchers build toward bigger workloads next season.
There’s also the broader question hanging over the “Baby Mets.” This could be the last chance for some of them to make their case before roster decisions arrive this winter.
Mark Vientos and Ronny Mauricio are out of options, and Francisco Alvarez could become a trade candidate if the Mets try to use the league-wide shortage of quality catching to address other needs. Brett Baty looks like the safest of the group after a strong September and could fit as a utility infielder in 2027, but it is still possible that none of these once-promising pieces will be on the Opening Day roster when next season begins.
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Mets Final Week Is Changing A Few 2027 Roster Conversations
With six games left in the 2026 season, the Mets have a few late looks that are starting to matter beyond the standings. Brett Baty has put together a strong September at the plate even while working through a minor knee injury, while Austin Warren has looked sharper on the mound since coming back from the injured list and Tobias Myers has been effective since his recall from the minors.
For a team already thinking about 2027 roster construction, those kinds of finishes can stick. Batys month has strengthened his case for a larger role, Warrens rebound has reopened his path after the injury, and Myers has given the front office a useful reminder that recent form can change a conversation quickly. The final week may not settle every question, but it is giving the Mets a few more names worth keeping in the mix. [Read more 🡒]
Pete Alonso Is Forcing Mets Fans To Revisit One Painful Decision
Pete Alonso keeps finding ways to turn familiar power into a fresh reminder for Mets fans. Now with the Baltimore Orioles, the former New York slugger went deep twice in a 4-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays, pushing him to 40 home runs and 108 RBIs on the season while adding another eye-catching line to a career that has long made him one of the games most recognizable power threats.
Alonso also reached a rare piece of history, becoming the first player in MLB to hit 40 or more home runs in his first season with teams in both the National and American Leagues. His latest milestone only sharpens the old conversation in Queens, because the bat that once anchored the middle of the Mets lineup is still producing at a level that keeps his departure from feeling less consequential with every big night. [Read more 🡒]
Mets Prospect Jefferson Rojas Just Forced A Tough Roster Decision
Jefferson Rojas arrived in Triple-A Syracuse late in the season and made the kind of first impression that tends to complicate an organizations winter plans. In six games, the Mets top prospect hit .308 with three home runs, a burst of production that only added to the sense that his timeline is moving quickly for a player the club may eventually count on in Queens.
Now the focus shifts from what Rojas did on the field to what the Mets do with him next. He is trending toward being part of the conversation for the 2027 Opening Day roster, but the front office has to weigh how to handle his spot on the 40-man roster with offseason uncertainty looming, including the possibility of a lockout and the looming Rule 5 draft. For a team trying to keep its best young talent in place, this is exactly the kind of decision that can get complicated in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]