ATLANTA (AP) — Four months after falling under .500 in 11 games, the New York Mets clinched a playoff spot a day after the regular season was supposed to end.

With an exciting one 8:7 win In Atlanta in the opening game of a makeup doubleheader on Monday, the Mets advanced to the best-of-three NL wild-card series that began Tuesday in Milwaukee behind Francisco Lindor’s ninth-inning home run.

New York lost the nightcap 3-0, but that didn’t matter. Pete Alonso and the Mets had already secured the 11th postseason berth in team history.

“We’re a franchise that hasn’t had enough of these moments,” said first-year president of baseball operations David Stearns, who grew up a Mets fan in New York City, during the clubhouse champagne party after Game 2.

“We still have more work to do. I don’t think anyone here is happy with just one celebration.”

New York overcame an 0-5 start to secure an unexpected berth in the postseason. To punch their ticket, the Mets recovered from deficits of 3-0 in the eighth inning and 7-6 in the ninth to beat the Braves in Monday’s opener. And the big success came to Lindor, who returned on Friday from a back injury that had kept him out of action since September 15th.

“It felt like it was in slow motion,” Lindor said when asked about the home run. “Emotion. Emotion. It felt like I got the spot I wanted. And you never know if the ball is going to go out or not, but I feel like I caught it 100%. We’re one step closer. Now we have to finish it.

Asked what he was thinking as he rounded the bases, Lindor said, “My back hurts. I’m tired. I know how good Atlanta is. But the only thing I thought about was just thank you, Jesus and God.”

New York had lost 77 consecutive games by three runs in the eighth inning or later since May 17, 2023.

It was a throwback to 1973, when the Mets also secured a spot in the playoffs the day after the season was supposed to end. That time they defeated the Chicago Cubs 6-4 and secured the NL East title.

This year, a 10-3 loss to the Dodgers on May 29 ended a three-game sweep in Los Angeles at Citi Field with a combined score of 18-5. New York fell to 22-33 in its first season under coach Carlos Mendoza, was six games out of the final wild-card spot and had to beat seven teams.

Lindor called a single players’ meeting. As the players explained it, the Mets brought up some issues in the clubhouse that day and committed to a positive attitude, effective preparation and a team-first approach that focused on helping each other and making games win.

“We just opened up the field and talked about how we can turn things around,” outfielder Brandon Nimmo said at the time. “It just felt like a boiling point.”

Since then, under Lindor’s leadership, they have the best record in the majors at 67-39. They have outscored their opponents 541-430.

“It was a tough battle,” Lindor said. “We put ourselves in a big hole and climbed further and further. We stayed afloat. You know, after the All-Star break, we never thought we were going to drown.”

One of New York’s biggest concerns heading into the Wild Card Series is the availability of closer Edwin Díaz, who secured the win in the opening doubleheader. The right-hander has thrown 66 pitches in the last two days.

The Mets, the biggest spender in baseball since Steve Cohen bought the team before the 2021 season, reached the playoffs in 2022 but lost a three-game Wild Card Series to San Diego. The Mets fell to 75-87 last year, when they had a record payroll of $319.5 million and were hit with a record tax of $100.8 million.

They began this year again at the top, with a projected $321 million, including $70 million in payments to teams that covered the salaries of traded players Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander and James McCann. Their proposed luxury tax was $83 million.

After winning the doubleheader opener, Cohen Posted on X: “Have you ever seen a game like this? I’m so proud of this team. Met fans, went out and celebrated.”

“It was a tremendous group effort,” said Alonso. “We deserve it.”

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