The Mets (84-68) host the first-place Phillies (91-61) at Citi Field for the final four (regular?) home games of the 2024 season. The Mets have lost six of the nine games they have played against their division rivals this year, including two of three at Citizens Bank Park earlier this month. As hard as it is to believe, the two teams have not faced each other at Citi Field since mid-May, when the Mets lost the first three with their worst game of the season before saving the finale.

The Mets are coming off a series win over the Nationals entering this final home game, helping catapult them into the postseason. It didn’t start well when it was announced that Francisco Lindor would miss between 2 and 5 games after a clean MRI, putting him out for the entire series against Washington. The offense struggled without its star player Monday night, and the Mets trailed 1-0 in the eighth inning while managing just three hits against Cole Irvin. New York finally broke through, tying the game with two outs on an infield single by José Iglesias. After a stellar start by Sean Mananea and three scoreless innings by three Mets relief pitchers, Starling Marte, who had come off the bench a few innings earlier, delivered the game-winning hit in the tenth inning.

From there, the Mets never stopped hitting. On Tuesday, the hitters were really good, winning the second game of the series 10-1. New York got home runs from Francisco Alvarez and Pete Alonso, but the highlight was Luisangel Acuña’s first career home run that completely broke the game open. Acuña had three hits on the night, backing up Tylor Megill, who limited Washington to just one unearned run in another strong start.

The Mets completed the sweep on Wednesday with a ten-run storm to secure a 10-0 victory. Jose Quintana was masterful, throwing seven shutout innings to extend his run to 22. ²⁄₃ scoreless frames. The hitters were quiet for the first three innings before scoring nine runs in the fourth, with Brandon Nimmo’s three-run hit putting the exclamation point on it. Acuña hit his second home run in as many nights, this time with a solo hit in the eighth, to cap the scoring for New York.

The series was essentially Acuña’s coming-out party. He entered the game on Monday as a defensive replacement and made every play on the field, including some that weren’t quite as easy. He seemed calm and composed on defense, even though a mistake at any moment could have cost New York the game. He kept that going by starting the next two games and going 5-of-8 with five runs scored and four runs scored, again playing solid defense. At least he’s given the Mets some relief that they can weather the storm without Lindor, at least in the near future, giving their shortstop the confidence to take his time and get fully healthy.

With their recent sweep, the Mets have opened up a two-game lead over the Braves, securing the final postseason spot in the National League. Additionally, the Mets enter tonight’s game tied with the Diamondbacks, and given their season series win, this would give the Mets the second Wild Card spot in the NL. The Mets are 2.5 games behind the Padres, giving them the first Wild Card spot that comes with a home playoff series.

The Phillies have played just three games since last playing the Mets. In that time, Philadelphia has lost two of three games against the Brewers. Despite this, they have maintained top spot in the National League standings, one game ahead of the Dodgers and three ahead of the aforementioned Brewers. The Phillies enter the game with a magic number of four wins over the Mets (and two over the Braves), meaning that two wins in this series would knock the Mets out of contention for the NL East and give Philadelphia a division title (depending on how Atlanta fares in its series against the Marlins).

Thursday, September 19: Luis Severino vs. Taijuan Walker at 7:15 p.m. ET on FOX, WWOR

Severino (2024): 172.0 IP, 149 K, 57 BB, 21 HR, 3.77 ERA, 4.21 FIP, 95 ERA-

Severino got off to another strong start in his last appearance against these two Phillies. He allowed three earned runs in six innings, with the only two real blemishes on his record being a solo home run by Bryce Harper in the fourth and a two-run shot by Harper in the sixth. Unfortunately, the latter put the game within reach, and Philadelphia took the win. Severino has been a key part of the team’s rotation resurgence. In his last six starts, he has a 2.35 ERA, 3.38 FIP and 1.10 WHIP, with 40 strikeouts in 38 ¹⁄₃ innings.

Walker (2024): 78.2 IP, 55 K, 31 BB, 20 HR, 6.29 ERA, 6.34 FIP, 152 ERA-

Walker was by far the weakest link in Philadelphia’s strong rotation, even losing his spot when the calendar flipped to September. After posting a 2.5 bWAR for Philadelphia last year and a 2.7 bWAR with the Mets in 2022, he has come crashing back down to earth with a career-low -0.9 bWAR in 2024. His last start was on August 28, when he took the loss to the Blue Jays after allowing six earned runs on a season-high 13 hits while not striking out a single batter in six innings. That was the last straw, and he was relegated to the bullpen, where he made three relief appearances that month. His last relief appearance was his best of the three – against the Mets, of course – when he scattered three hits over three innings to help Philadelphia win. It was the only one of his 17 appearances in 2024 in which he got away without allowing a single run. Just imagine that.

Friday, September 20: David Peterson vs. Cristopher Sánchez at 7:10 p.m. ET on Apple TV+

Peterson (2024): 110.1 IP, 89 K, 43 BB, 8 HR, 2.85 ERA, 3.86 FIP, 72 ERA-

Peterson delivered his longest start in 2024 in his last appearance, reaching 7 ²⁄₃ innings. He was tied with Sánchez, who he will face again here, until Philadelphia’s pitcher allowed a run to Tyrone Taylor in the eighth inning. Carlos Mendoza relied on his left-handed batter in the eighth inning instead of going to the bullpen, and it proved to be the wrong decision, as Peterson allowed two consecutive hits that tied the game (one that the Mets eventually lost on a walk-off in the ninth inning). Still, it was another really encouraging start for the youngster, who now has a 2.22 ERA, 2.96 FIP and 1.15 WHIP, with 46 strikeouts in 56 ²⁄₃ innings over nine starts since August 3.

Sánchez (2024): 172.0 IP, 142 K, 38 BB, 9 HR, 3.24 ERA, 2.86 FIP, 78 ERA-

Sánchez slowed the Mets in his last outing, holding them scoreless for seven innings before a Taylor home run broke the ice and gave New York a temporary lead. Moreover, they had no answer for Sánchez, who scored seven or more runs, allowing just one run on six hits and seven strikeouts. Philadelphia is where they are now thanks largely to contributions from people you wouldn’t expect, like the 27-year-old left-hander, a first-time NL All Star in 2024. He has been particularly brilliant in his last six starts, posting a 1.99 ERA, 3.20 FIP and 0.93 WHIP, with 38 strikeouts in 40 ²⁄₃ innings.

Saturday, September 21: Sean Manaea vs. Ranger Suárez at 4:10 p.m. ET on SNY

Manaea (2024): 171.0 IP, 177 K, 61 BB, 18 HR, 3.26 ERA, 3.70 FIP, 82 ERA-

Manaea was fantastic again in his last outing against Washington, going seven innings for the sixth time in his last 10 starts and pitching into the seventh inning for the seventh straight year. And that’s coming from someone who hadn’t thrown a pitch into the seventh inning until July 2, which makes it all the more impressive given how much he’s gotten better throughout the year. In his last outing, he struck out six players and allowed just one earned run on four hits, keeping the Mets in the game long enough for them to beat the Nats. Since Aug. 16, he has a 2.81 ERA, 3.44 FIP and 0.81 WHIP, with 52 strikeouts in 48 innings across seven appearances.

Suárez (2024): 143.2 IP, 139 K, 36 BB, 11 HR, 3.13 ERA, 3.09 FIP, 76 ERA-

Suárez has had a brilliant start to the season, posting a 1.36 ERA and a perfect 9-0 record in his first 10 starts and a 1.83 ERA in his 16 starts. He looked for a while like he was the clear favorite for the NL Cy Young, but he has been back down to earth since late June, especially since missing about a month with back pain that put him on the IL in late July. Since coming off the IL on August 24, he has pitched past the sixth inning just once and has a 4.44 ERA, 3.46 FIP and 1.52 WHIP in five starts, with 23 strikeouts in 24 ¹⁄₃ innings. This includes his last start, in which he suffered a loss because he allowed three earned runs on four hits in five innings.

Sunday, September 22: TBD vs. Zack Wheeler at 7:15 p.m. ET on ESPN

To be announced

The Mets have not yet announced a starting pitcher for Sunday night’s nationally televised game. It could be Tylor Megill, but the club has not made a decision.

Wheeler (2024): 186.2 IP, 205 K, 49 BB, 18 HR, 2.56 ERA, 3.14 FIP, 62 ERA-

Wheeler is playing another Cy Young-level season and currently ranks second among all NL starters in fWAR (5.0, behind Chris Sale) and ERA (2.56, also behind Sale). Since being traded by the Yankees on July 29 (seven earned runs in five innings), he hasn’t allowed more than two earned runs in any of his nine starts. In that time, he’s posted a 1.71 ERA, 2.31 FIP and 0.81 WHIP, with 66 strikeouts in 58 innings. In his last outing, he was spectacular, holding Milwaukee to one earned run on four hits in seven innings to earn his 16th win, a career-best performance.