Why the Mets still have a good chance of a playoff spot in the Braves doubleheader

The Mets have worked for more than seven months to get to this moment. On Monday, they'll finally find out whether or not they've made it to the postseason – and they'll have full control over the outcome.

“I’ll sign up for this any day. “Especially given the way we started the year,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said via SNY. “Before this year, no one would have expected us to be in this position and here we have a chance to do something special and we are going to do it. We’ll go back to Atlanta, get the last one and go from there.”

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Sunday was one of the most exciting days in the history of the MLB regular season. With the Mets and Diamondbacks winning must-win games and the Braves losing, all three teams are tied for the final two Wild Card spots.

Now the Mets and Braves must play a doubleheader on Monday at Truist Park in Atlanta to decide who will be in and who they will play when the Wild Card Series begins on Tuesday.

Here are the scenarios for the Mets:

• If they split up, the Mets and Braves will be there. New York would return to Milwaukee to face the Brewers in a best-of-three starting Tuesday, and Atlanta would face the Padres.
• If they sweep, the Mets and Diamondbacks will be there. New York would travel to San Diego to face the Padres and Arizona would face Milwaukee.
• Once they're swept, the Mets go home. The Braves would face the Padres and the Diamondbacks would face the Brewers.

In short: If you're the Mets, you win and you're in.

Ideally, New York would win Game 1 on Monday. This would allow them to rest shortstop Francisco Lindor, who is dealing with a back injury, in Game 2.

The Mets have named Tylor Megill the starter for Game 1 of the doubleheader against the Braves. Megill allowed four runs in his only start against the Braves this season. He allowed three home runs in that start, the most allowed against an opponent this season.

Atlanta will start right-hander Spencer thresholdbach, who is 8-7 with a 3.47 ERA and 122 strikeouts in 20 starts this season. Schlafenbach is 2-0 in two starts against the Mets, allowing one run over 14 innings (0.64 ERA) with 15 strikeouts.