The New York Mets defeated the Washington Nationals 7-0 Thursday, completing a three-game sweep at home. With a 47-45 record, New York is now in the final Wild Card spot, the first time the team has been in playoff position since early May.

After a disastrous 0-5 start and a cataclysmically bad month of May, the Mets went on a wildly unexpected run in June, winning 16 of 24 games to catapult themselves back into playoff contention with the best offense in baseball. After a frustrating stretch in early July, the team is back to its winning ways and took care of business against a weaker Nationals team in three games this week.

Outfielder Brandon Nimmo continued his torrid hot streak Thursday, hitting a three-RBI double in the fifth inning to kickstart a five-run rally. Slugger J.D. Martinez had a great day as well, going 3-for-3 with one RBI, two runs and a walk.

On the mound, shaky Mets starter David Peterson escaped a first-inning jam but eventually settled down and threw six scoreless innings. The bullpen, which has been wildly erratic since Edwin Diaz’ 10-game suspension last month, survived a few scares but kept the Nationals in check through the final three frames. It was the Mets’ first shutout victory of the season. They were the last team in MLB to earn one.

After years of elite pitching and mediocre offense, the Mets have completely flipped the script in the 2024 season. Nimmo and Martinez, along with the likes of Francisco Lindor, Francisco Alvarez and Mark Vientos, have formed one of the most potent lineups in the game. Jose Iglesias and Luis Torrens have been revelatory additions to the roster and a credit to the team’s new front office leaders. Slugger Pete Alonso, ironically the team’s only All-Star, has not quite kept pace with many of his teammates but remains a centerpiece.

On the mound, however, New York’s pitching staff has not yet earned anyone’s trust. Reliever Adam Ottavino is a walking heart attack and hot hands Reed Garrett and Jake Diekman have lost form since encouraging starts to the season. Peterson is one of several spot starters that struggle to consistently go beyond five innings. Ace pitcher Kodai Senga has not yet returned from injury.

All is not lost, however. Luis Severino and Sean Manaea have both been consistent starters all season, and Jose Quintana has caught fire in recent starts as well. In the bullpen, Diaz has bounced back from a tough start, injury and suspension to regain some confidence as the team’s closer. Adrian Houser and Jose Butto, who both had failed stints as starters earlier in the season, have found new roles as long relievers.

After cutting bait on several massive contracts last season, New York was always going to be an imperfect team in 2024. That being said, with a tense Wild Card fight on their hands with the Padres and Cardinals, the Mets will likely be surprise buyers at the trade deadline. Importing pitching of any sort could transform this squad from a ‘team of the moment’ to a legitimate playoff contender if the bats can stay hot.

New York Mets ace pitcher Max Scherzer has repeatedly defended his actions following an incident Wednesday in which the star was ejected for allegedly using an illegal substance on the mound. Scherzer faces a 10-day suspension for the violation but can appeal the decision.

Scherzer was ejected before the fourth inning of his start Wednesday on the road against the Los Angeles Dodgers after a heated discussion with multiple umpires. He had already been checked for substances earlier on and had been forced to switch gloves after the first inspection. Umpires were still not satisfied with the substance on Scherzer’s hands during the second inspection despite the ace’s pleas that it was “just rosin.”

“He said my hand is too sticky,” Scherzer told SNY after the game. “I said, ‘I swear on my kids’ lives, I’m not using anything else. This is sweat and rosin. Sweat and rosin.’ I keep saying it over and over, and they touch my hand, they say it’s sticky. I say, ‘Yes, it is, because it’s sweat and rosin.’ And they say it’s too sticky. They threw me out because of that.”

Despite Scherzer’s claim that the umpires ejected him for arguing, rather than using an illegal substance, the ace pitcher will reportedly still have to serve an automatic 10-game suspension, which will be preceded by a hearing. Scherzer reserves the right to appeal the decision.

For their part, umpires stood by their decision to eject the future Hall-of-Famer, arguing that the substances on Scherzer’s hands exceeded anything they had seen previously.

“It was far more than we have ever seen before on a pitcher in live action and we understand the repercussions of removing a pitcher from the game, we take that very seriously and with the training we have been given by Major League Baseball to check … this is clearly something that went too far, it went over the line,” home plate umpire Dan Bellini said, according to NJ.com.

Over the course of the early 2023 season, three pitchers have now been ejected for the use of illegal substances. All three inspections have been carried out by umpire Phil Cuzzi.

Scherzer’s ejection and potential suspension come at a poor time for the Mets, who have had to start the season without starting pitchers Justin Verlander and Jose Quintana due to injuries. The team also recently lost Carlos Carrasco to injury as well and was already calling up minor-league arms to compensate for the depleted rotation.

Despite Scherzer’s ejection, New York still defeated former Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard and Los Angeles 5-3, clinching a series victory on the road against the West Coast rival. Brandon Nimmo went 5-for-5 in the game, and his go-ahead home run in the fifth inning was met with “Do it for Max” chants in the Mets dugout.

When he’s not running his hedge fund or doing laps in a pool full of gold coins, Steve Cohen is trying to win a World Series as the owner of the New York Mets. In fact, this 2022-23 offseason is demonstrating that he’s hell-bent on it following an eye-watering spending spree in November and early December.

It all started on Nov. 9, when the Mets agreed to a five-year, $102 million contract with star closer Edwin Diaz, making him the highest-paid relief pitcher in MLB history. New York got their guy and fans rejoiced as the team demonstrated a willingness to spend for him. But Cohen wasn’t even close to done.

Three days after Jacob deGrom signed with the Rangers, the Mets signed three-time Cy Young winner Justin Verlander to a two-year, $86 million contract. The deal made him the highest-paid MLB pitcher for the 2023 season, tied with fellow Mets ace Max Scherzer, who received a nearly identical deal last year.

Two days later, Cohen threw some spare change around and signed former White Sox star Jose Quintana for two years and $26 million. It was merely a pallet freshener for the billionaire, as the following day, the front office finally settled with center fielder Brandon Nimmo, effectively locking him down for the rest of his career with an eight-year, $162 million deal. News minutes later that the team secured highly touted reliever David Robertson on a one-year, $10 million contract felt like an afterthought.

At the beginning of the offseason, it was generally agreed that the Mets needed to secure Nimmo and Diaz, re-sign or replace deGrom and bolster the bullpen and middle rotation. In the span of a month, the team has signed Nimmo, Diaz, Verlander, Quintana and Robertson while also making a few minor trades for more arms.

To accomplish this, Cohen has gone beyond what even he considered to be the team’s budget, as New York’s projected 2023 payroll should be higher than $300 million for the first time in league history. The punchline to all of this is that he isn’t done yet.

For fans and the front office alike, Japanese starting pitcher Kodai Senga seems to be the final piece of the puzzle, a right-hander with an arsenal of pitches to accompany a 96 MPH fastball. The star foreign prospect is reportedly seeking a long-term deal with a “win now” team and the Mets have expressed an intense interest in signing him. One has to assume that they’re in the running on spending power and roster potential alone. Nothing says “win now” in baseball more than Verlander, Scherzer and a $300 million payroll.

Last offseason, Cohen’s readiness to spend sent shockwaves through the league as the Mets went from affluent underachievers to prohibitive spenders in an instant. The team didn’t live up to expectations in 2022, losing the NL East to the Braves before exiting an unceremonious Wild Card series against the Padres. But the Mets’ new owner seems to have at least one solution for that, and as long as the checks keep cashing, it’s hard not to imagine the team from Queens as a legitimate heavyweight for the foreseeable future.

Yoenis Cespedes scored a big home run, Jeurys Familia pitched out of a huge jam in the ninth and rookie Brandon Nimmo keyed a three-run rally in the seventh to lead the New York Mets to a 4-3 home victory over the Chicago Cubs Thursday night in their first meeting since last year’s National League Championship Series.

Mets Rally, Beat Cubs 4-3 To Halt Skid In NLSC Rematch

The Cubs snapped a three-game winning streak, while the Mets had lost their previous four games, including a three-game road series against the Washington Nationals.

“It sure came at the right time,” Mets manager Terry Collins said. “To come back against that team, first game of this 11-game homestand, I think it’s huge for us. It lifted the spirits of every guy in there.”

Kris Bryant gave the Cubs an early lead with a two-run homer off left-hander Steven Matz in the first. Matz, who pitched 5 1/3 innings on Thursday with an extra day of rest following an elbow examination earlier this week that revealed a bone spur, sat in the upper 90s with his fastball all night. He allowed seven hits and three walks, but only allowed one run– a homer by Javier Baez– after Bryant took him deep in the first.

Before leaving with one out in the seventh, Cubs starter John Lackey gave up only one run, Cespedes’ solo drive in the sixth. The right-hander also allowed five hits, walked two and struck out five.

Chicago threatened to regain the lead in the ninth, putting their first two batters in scoring position with no outs before Familia earned his 27th save in 27 chances.

“It’s like a 98-mile-an-hour lefty cutter — good luck,” Bryant said of the Dominican right-hander’s pitches. “I just think our last three at-bats, they were a little too anxious. He’s supposed to do that. That’s why he’s the closer on their team, that’s why he’ll have a long career. Sometimes you have to tip your cap.”

Cespedes’ homer in the sixth, which soared into the upper deck in left field and cut the Cubs’ lead to 3-1, was the longest home run by any Mets player this season. The ball came off the bat at 110 mph and would have traveled 441 feet unimpeded, according to MLB’s Statcast. ESPN Stats & Info had it at 466 feet.

“I think it woke us up, I really do,” Collins said. “He hasn’t hit one in a while, and that was a big one.”

In the seventh, after Travis d’Arnaud singled with one out, Cubs manager Joe Maddon elected to remove Lackey from the game, turning to new reliever Joel Peralta. The right-hander walked pinch-hitter Alejandro De Aza, then served up an RBI single to Nimmo. That brought up Neil Walker, whose bouncer to the right side forced Baez to charge. The second baseman fired toward third base on the run for a potential tag play but his throwing error ended up allowing two runs to score.

The Mets, who swept Chicago last October to reach the World Series, had lost nine consecutive regular-season games against the Cubs dating to August 2014.

“We made one mistake on defense, but otherwise it was a pretty good game of baseball,” Maddon said.

Nimmo, the 23-year-old outfielder who made his debut with the Mets on Sunday against the Atlanta Braves, was thrilled after earning his first Major League RBI.

“I was absolutely ecstatic,” said Nimmo. “It is hard to put into words, because this is something that I’ve dreamed about ever since I was a kid.”

The two teams will face off again in the second of their four-game series at Citi Field on Friday night. RIght-hander Jason Hammel will start for the Cubs. Hammel is 0-3 with a 4.91 ERA in five career starts against the Mets.

Righty Jacob deGrom will take the mound for the Mets. DeGrom has not pitched with a lead in any of his last four outings despite a 2.77 ERA over that stretch, and will look to snap a personal 10-game losing streak when he opposes Hammel on Friday. Over those 10 starts, deGrom is 0-4 with a 3.13 ERA, 63 strikeouts and 15 walks.

NEW YORK, NY – JUNE 30: Brandon Nimmo #9 of the New York Mets follows through on a seventh-inning, RBI base hit against the Chicago Cubs at Citi Field on June 30, 2016 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)