'Why not believe?': Mets' nucleus shedding old postseason narratives

LOS ANGELES -- Had Pete Alonso not homered in Game 3 of the National League Wild Card Series in Milwaukee to send the Mets to the NL Division Series and the wild ride that has ensued, it would have sparked continued questions about the viability of this franchise’s core.

It’s a nucleus that began forming toward the end of last decade with the call-ups of Brandon Nimmo, Jeff McNeil and Alonso, and that solidified into its current form when the Mets traded for Francisco Lindor in 2021 and locked him up on a 10-year extension, then inked McNeil and Nimmo to long-term deals. Given that Alonso will become a free agent after this season, it was reasonable to think entering that ninth inning in Milwaukee that this core might be playing its final game together.

Had that happened, their legacy would have been mostly one of disappointment. It’s a group that couldn’t maintain a second-half surge in 2019, that fell short of qualifying for the pandemic-expanded playoff bracket in ’20, that suffered through miserable years in ’21 and ’23 and that most infamously lost its grip on the NL East title in ‘22 before flaming out in the NL Wild Card round.

There wasn’t exactly a flood of evidence that this core was capable of anything more until about two weeks ago, when Lindor and Alonso -- with plenty of help from Nimmo -- began hitting enough late homers to wash away the disappointment of seasons past.

Standing in a champagne-soaked clubhouse late Wednesday night, Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns was asked about the old narrative of disappointment.

“I think they’ve shown that’s bull [crap],” Stearns said. “This core has been winning games since June 1, so we can put that to bed right now.”

No matter what happens in the NL Championship Series against the Dodgers, which begins Sunday night, or a potential World Series berth that could lie ahead, this core has indeed proven things it never had in the past.

“We just won,” Nimmo said. “Until you do something, there’s always a faux pas around it, right? And that makes it even harder to do. We just did it. We just broke that barrier. So yeah, I think it’s complete bull crap, too.”

Although Lindor and Nimmo will be here for years to come, Alonso could still leave after the season, and McNeil only has two more guaranteed years on his contract. As such, the clock is already ticking on this core -- as it does for all nuclei, which often break up quicker than expected. Soon, the Mets’ lineup could revolve around Francisco Alvarez, Jett Williams, Luisangel Acuña and Drew Gilbert, or perhaps around a big-name free agent like Juan Soto. These things can be difficult to predict.

All that’s clear now is that the present core has an opportunity to cement its legacy in the NLCS and World Series, building on the acumen it’s already shown.

“This is such a special group,” Alonso said. “Why not believe?”