They have done it again. Another New York Mets season has come to an end, and they have nothing to show for it except heartbreak and disappointment.

This year’s Mets were supposed to be the real deal. They finally had an owner willing to spend the highest payroll in the history of baseball, two all-time great starters Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer, and a truly elite season from closer Edwin Diaz. The team’s 10.5 game lead in the division in June was so big that it had only been blown three times in MLB history. However, none of that mattered, as they only played three postseason games and then were sent home by the San Diego Padres.

Let’s start with what really went wrong — the Mets were not supposed to lose this division. They spent over $100 million more dollars than the Atlanta Braves. They were better all year and had a double-digit lead. But, sure enough, by the time the Mets faced the Braves in the second to last series of the year, they were tied. 

The Mets should not have been in this position in the first place. They should have secured the division long ago. With their two superstar pitchers, deGrom and Scherzer, who have collectively won five Cy Young Awards, the Mets needed to win at least one game.

They instead failed to win a single game, with their three losses giving the Braves the first place spot in the NL East. They allowed a combined seven runs and had a total of 5.4 earned run average in the Braves series and blew the division. Following the series, the Braves went on to clinch the National League East with a win over the Miami Marlins, despite a Mets sweep of the Nationals the next day. It was way too little, way too late.

Being swept by Atlanta was bad enough. If they had simply lost to the Padres in the Wild Card round with some level of pride, this humiliating choke in the division would have been the moment that defined the 2022 Mets. But, they did not go out with pride. They went out with trumpets.

All season, star closer Diaz had come out to the song “Narco’” by Timmy Trumpet and Blasterjaxx. The fans would play air trumpets, and Mr. Met would join in. They did this because essentially every time Diaz came in, it was because the Mets were winning — he would come in to close it out, and the fans would be happy.

In the “win-or-go-home” game three of the Wild Card round, the Mets were down 4-0 in the eighth inning. They had been completely shut out by the Padres’ third starter, Joe Musgrove. They had one hit all night, yet they still brought Diaz in, and the trumpets still started playing. The TV cuts to fans dancing. No, not Mets fans, Padres fans. This song that had once meant that the game was over and the Mets had won had been completely robbed of its bite. The Mets were once again a joke.

Many say that since the Mets won more than 100 games this season, they were one of the best teams in baseball all year. Can’t they do it again next year? There is no “next year” because this team is not coming back together. After this season, deGrom is a free agent, similar to starting centerfielder Brandon Nimmo, starting pitcher Chris Bassitt, and relievers Adam Ottavino and Seth Lugo.

So, here’s to this year’s Mets — the team that was supposed to be different. The team that was supposed to change what the Mets had been for the last three decades. The team that had opposing fans dancing for their star closer in the playoffs because of how little they were scared. The team that, despite winning more than 100 games for the first time since 1988, could not make the playoffs and lost all its best players in the process.

Contact Pablo Ocariz at [email protected].