ATLANTA — The Atlanta Braves and New York Mets faced off in a doubleheader on Monday to determine the final two National League wild-card spots, one day after the regular season’s official conclusion.
The doubleheader was necessitated after Hurricane Helene caused two games between the NL East rivals to be postponed last week, leaving their postseason fates hanging in the balance.
The Braves had a chance to secure their seventh consecutive playoff berth on Sunday, but a 4-2 loss to the Kansas City Royals left them tied with the Mets at 88-72. Meanwhile, the Mets improved to 88-72 after shutting out Milwaukee 5-0. The Arizona Diamondbacks finished 89-73 after an 11-2 blowout win over San Diego, but both Atlanta and New York hold tiebreakers over Arizona, meaning they only needed to split the doubleheader to secure their spots in the Wild Card Series.
Arizona, watching closely from Phoenix, needed a Braves-Mets sweep to sneak into the final wild-card slot.
In Game 1, Atlanta’s rookie Spencer Schwellenbach (8-7, 3.47 ERA) took the mound against Mets pitcher Tylor Megill (4-5, 3.98 ERA). For Game 2, Atlanta’s Chris Sale (18-3, 2.38 ERA) was set to face New York’s Luis Severino (11-7, 3.91 ERA), although the Game 1 winner was expected to adjust their pitching plans to rest their ace for the upcoming Wild Card Series on Tuesday.
With NL Central champion Milwaukee and top wild card San Diego already securing hosting duties for the best-of-three opening round, all eyes are on who will be their opponents as the wild-card race comes down to the wire.