So often tempted to refer to any given Met loss as a “microcosm” of the portion of the season that has been defined by the club’s long, gradual decline from surefire playoff participant to accidental late-September survivor, I wondered if the bigger picture from which microcosm is derived is technically referred to as a “cosm”. It is not. The word I was looking for was “macrocosm [1],” though cosm would be more satisfying, given that it is a four-letter word, and certainly these Mets inspire a string of those.
I found Wednesday night’s 10-3 debacle [2] versus the Cubs at Wrigley field just another piece of the Met macrocosm that has expanded out into the universe day by day, defeat by defeat, debacle by debacle, interrupted only by the anomalous wins that have — along with various Red and Diamondback inadequacies —mysteriously kept this 81-77 Met team clutching the final Wild Card position in the National League.
The final Wild Card position in the National League is a diplomatic way to say sixth-best record in the circuit. This is what is being fought over. Or actively eschewed by three so-called contenders, if we were suspicious types. The Reds lost in eleven innings Wednesday night. The Diamondbacks also lost in eleven. The Mets didn’t bother making it look close. If trying not to win is the actual aim of this clumsy scrum, the Mets haven’t yet proven themselves quite good enough to intentionally blow it.
We’ll take it on faith they were trying to win on Wednesday night and were not up to the task on almost any front. Starting pitching, via the Jonah Tong from a couple of outings ago, was not viable. Relief pitching, which included a couple of starters, was not effective. Defense, save for one sweet throw home from the reactivated Tyrone Taylor, was mostly absent. Hitting, sans Francisco Alvarez’s best longball efforts, lacked even momentary impact. The manager said some version of “we’re going through it right now” afterwards. That’s one of Carlos Mendoza’s pet phrases, like “traffic” to refer to baserunners and “we’ve got to be better” to refer to the state of things. All the Mets do is go through it. They’ve yet to come out of it.
A microcosm implies the elements of a situation have been distilled into a handy snack pack that allows closer examination and deeper understanding. Nah, losing as the Mets lost on Wednesday night is just one more glob of erratic futility that should have ended the Mets weeks, maybe months ago. But the sixth-best record is still out there for the taking, and the Mets still inexplicably hold it. Stave off explanations for four more games, accidentally win enough of them, and, in the face of the mysteries of the macrocosm, this baseball team actually becomes a bona fide playoff participant.
Will the wonders of the universe every cease? I guess we’ll find out by Sunday.