Steven Ryan/Getty Images
The New York Mets regular season concluded this week and they accomplished something they have only done for the fourth time in franchise history, winning 100 games. Despite winning 100 games this season and making the playoffs, they clinched the wild card. They will now face off against the San Diego Padres in the best of three series beginning this Friday at Citi Field.
The Mets held the division lead over 170 days all season long before the Atlanta Braves overcame a 10.5 game deficit and had an unprecedented amount of success in June, July, August and eventually September. Even though the Mets won’t represent the NL East as division champions this postseason, it is important to note, this season was not a failure for the Mets.
1. First 100 win season since 1988
This was quite the turnaround season for the Mets. After only musterting 77 victories last season, the Mets had a franchise altering year. They finished with a record of 101-61. It’s just the fourth time in team history that the Mets put together a 100 plus win season. Two out of the other three years in 1969 and 1986, they won the World Series and some would argue that this team is much more talented than those.
This team and with all the pieces they put together exceed expectations. Yes, many baseball fans and experts expected a great year for the Mets but I don’t think many thought they would get to 100 wins. This was a great success for this franchise and they will only get better as long as they have the same pieces for many years to come.
2. Pete Alonso and Francisco Lindor had career years
The Mets top hitters finally showed what they were capable of after lackluster performances in 2021. After a down first year in Queens, Francisco Lindor finally showed why the Mets paid him over $300 million for the next 10 years. He hit a total of 26 home runs and drove in a career high 107 runs batted in, marking it the first time in his career he’s driven over 100 runs in a single season.
To add on to that, Pete Alonso put on another incredible year hitting 40 home runs, making him just the second Met ever to hit 40 plus home runs in multiple seasons. He also drove in 131 runs batted in, which is now a new single season Mets club record for a single season. Not too shabby for the Mets best hitters. They really helped contribute to the Mets season this season and can help them in the postseason.
3. Jeff McNeil won a batting title:
Jeff McNeil had a revamped 2022 after a very disappointing 2021. Not only was he an All-Star for the second time in four years since being in the big leagues, he became just the second Met in team history. He joins Jose Reyes in winning a league batting title. Nobody expected this kind of season from McNeil but he was without a question a huge part of the Mets success this year.
