Mets' bitter end and offseason uncertainty leaves cloud after season that was big step forward

There is no way to put a positive spin on how the Mets' season ended.

Late in the regular season, with the NL East title in their grasp if they could've just snatched one win in Atlanta against the Braves, they melted down and were swept. And that sweep came after the Mets' failures against inferior competition earlier in September kept the division in play.

Then, in the three-game Wild Card Series they never should have been in against the San Diego Padres, the Mets were no-shows in Game 1 and Game 3, with Max Scherzer torpedoing their chances in the first game and the offense doing so in the last.

And so the Mets' 101-61 season, one where they won the second-most games in franchise history, will be remembered for what didn't happen in September and October instead of what did happen over the first five months.

Before we get into what went wrong and what's next, one thing needs to be pointed out...

That the Mets went from 77 wins in 2021 to 101 wins in 2022 is a massive accomplishment. Their goal is to build a sustainable winner that is a perennial playoff team, and they are well on their way to achieving that.

But right now, as we dig through the remnants of an enormous lost opportunity, it's important to explore why it happened and what the Mets can do to make sure it doesn't happen again in 2023 and beyond.

This season might have been the only chance the Mets get with both Scherzer (whose ERA this season was the lowest of his career) and Jacob deGrom (who is set to opt out of his contract after the World Series) atop the rotation. So it stings even more that the two pitchers who were supposed to help carry them to the promised land were huge culprits when it came to coughing up the division late.

In the playoffs, Scherzer -- whose oblique might have still been compromised, even though he says it wasn't -- failed.

DeGrom excelled in what was his first (and perhaps last) playoff start at Citi Field, giving Mets fans at least one good memory from this postseason.

Along with the late-season shakiness of Scherzer and deGrom, it was clear in September against the Chicago Cubs, Miami Marlins, and Washington Nationals -- and especially the Braves and Padres -- that the 2022 Mets were not ready for prime time.

Yes, they scored the fifth-most runs in baseball this season, mostly with a contact-heavy approach and middling power.

Yes, they excelled and showed tons of moxie for four months without deGrom and two months without Scherzer.

Yes, their bullpen actually performed quite well over the last few months despite the front office failing to make major upgrades at the trade deadline.

It didn't matter.

When it counted most late in the season and in the playoffs (save for a strong performance in Game 2), pretty much every key offensive player except Jeff McNeil came up small. They seemed tight at times. They seemed in between. They got away from what got them to that point -- working counts, moving runners over, capitalizing in situations with runners in scoring position.

The struggles of Scherzer and deGrom were likely at least partially health-related (Scherzer's oblique and deGrom's late-season blister), but the failure of Chris Bassitt in Atlanta and against San Diego in Game 3 were seemingly mental. He simply could not hack it in the two biggest starts of his season.

Additionally, Taijuan Walker and Carlos Carrasco both struggled late in the year. If they hadn't, the Mets almost certainly would've won the division despite hiccups from deGrom, Scherzer, and the offense.

Now, while some will look at what happened to the 2022 Mets and predict doom going forward, I'll say this...

Sometimes, a good team just isn't ready to take the next step.

The 1985 Mets won 98 games but couldn't quite get to the playoffs, though their late-season push was a strong one (unlike the 2022 Mets). The next season, they won 108 games and the World Series.

The 1998 Mets were swept in Atlanta at the end of the season, choking away a playoff berth. The 1999 Mets got over the hump and made a deep playoff run. The 2000 Mets made the World Series.

The 2005 Mets, emerging from a couple of losing seasons much like the 2022 team did, didn't quite make it. The next year, they went wire-to-wire in the NL East and came one win away from making the World Series.

Granted, those aren't perfect comparisons. That's because the 2022 Mets won 101 games and seemed ready to win it all. Clearly, they weren't.

Hopefully, the Mets who will be back next season and just experienced their first taste of a real pennant race and playoff baseball in New York (like Pete Alonso and Francisco Lindor) will be better prepared to handle it in the coming seasons.

And despite how bad this hurts right now for the Mets and their fans, the future is bright. This wasn't just about 2022, but about building a sustained winner in Queens.

The Mets have lots of key players heading to free agency (and will very likely re-sign some of them and add some new big names via free agency and trade), but much of their core is in place.

Among those under contract next season are Alonso, Lindor, McNeil, Starling Marte, Eduardo Escobar, Mark Canha, Scherzer, Luis Guillorme, Drew Smith, Tylor Megill, and David Peterson.

It is very likely that Francisco Alvarez will be the Mets' Opening Day catcher in 2023, which should go a long way toward addressing the extra pop they need in their lineup. Brett Baty could be a starter next season at some point, too. And the rest of the farm system is on the upswing.

When it comes to the pending free agents, it will surprise me if Edwin Diaz -- who wants to stay -- isn't back. And there is probably a solid chance Brandon Nimmo is back, too.

At manager, Buck Showalter is in place. Above him -- from the analytics department to the top baseball executives and everyone else in the front office -- the right people are being put in place. The Mets are also searching for a new team president, though whether that person is business-oriented or more baseball-oriented remains to be seen.

Then of course there's Steve Cohen, who will continue to advise his baseball people to spend smartly but aggressively while building what he hopes will be the East Coast version of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

There is no getting around the fact that the end of the Mets' season was crushing. But their window remains wide open. There will be some new faces in 2023, but the goal will again be attainable -- capturing their first World Series title since 1986.