The New York Mets go into Padres vs Mets at Citi Field with real momentum behind them, and the biggest reason is simple: their bullpen has changed the shape of their season. After a deadline overhaul, the Mets have improved to 9-3 and are suddenly looking like a far more settled team.
That matters because this is not just a series between two clubs in decent form. It is also a rematch of sorts. Earlier in the season, the Mets took two of three games from the Padres at Petco Park, and last year in September they again took two of three from San Diego at Citi Field.
A bullpen that has changed the story
The Mets’ recent run has been built on relief pitching. Since August 3, they have had the third-best bullpen ERA in baseball at 2.79, and that stretch has included 10 scoreless innings across three games in their latest sweep.
That is especially notable because the group has effectively been rebuilt. The Mets turned over their bullpen after trading Brooks Raley, Luke Weaver and A.J. Minter, with Devin Williams also on the IL. Even so, the new-look unit has held up well and has given the team a platform to win games in tight spots.
There was no shortage of pressure in the recent sweep of the Nationals. On Friday, the Mets trailed 1-0 before winning 4-1. On Saturday, Francisco Lindor delivered a walk-off hit in a 5-4 win. The series ended with a 4-3 victory after Luis Torrens hit his fourth home run in seven days.
Lindor keeps setting the tone
Francisco Lindor has been central to that surge. His tying home run on Friday and his walk-off hit on Saturday summed up a team that is finding ways to finish games rather than merely stay in them.
That is the broader point for the Mets. They are not just winning because of one big night or one hot stretch at the plate. They are winning because the bullpen is giving the rest of the roster a chance to breathe, and because the pressure moments are being handled with more control than earlier in the season.
The Padres arrive with their own reasons to believe this series can be competitive, but the Mets have already shown they can handle San Diego over three games. With both teams entering the matchup playing well, the first test at Citi Field should tell us a lot about whether the Mets’ turnaround is sustainable.
If the bullpen keeps throwing like this, the question changes quickly. It is no longer whether the Mets can recover from their deadline sell-off. It becomes whether this new version of the team can keep carrying its recent form into bigger games.
