NY Mets magic number: Another Reds loss has us calculating with the Giants

There are two phases of September every team looks forward to. One involves scoreboard watching. The other is a magic number countdown. We’re at the point where we can indeed start to tally off the New York Mets magic number.

It’s the Cincinnati Reds whose results have mattered most for the Mets right now to secure themselves a playoff spot. Unfortunately for them, they’ve been passed in the Wild Card Standings by the San Francisco Giants who now trail the Mets by 4 games.

To calculate the magic number is pretty simple. The formula is 163 - (First Place Team Wins + Second Place team Loss). In this case, it’s the 75 Mets wins and 69 Giants losses added together and then subtracted from 163. This gives us the Mets magic number of 19.

The Mets have a chance to do something incredible this weekend with their magic number

Thank the schedule makers for unknowingly putting the Mets and Reds against each other this weekend. The three games have huge playoff implications. A sweep by the Mets buries the Reds. Reverse it and Cincinnati breathes new life. A more practical result of one team winning 2 of 3 and it’s more of a step forward for one club rather than a leap.

The Reds took 2 out of 3 from the Mets to begin the second half, but both losses for New York were games that slipped away. The “Alex Carrillo game” started it off. The next day, the Mets scored a run in each of the first two innings. They went away quietly without another run crossing the plate in the 5-2 loss. Both losses left fans feeling like they were headed down a path of obscurity.

With the Giants suddenly doing some loose threatening, we should have some concerns about this turning into a complete waltz. Are they about to pull off what the Detroit Tigers did last season? Their September schedule includes six games against the St. Louis Cardinals and then nothing but NL West teams. Their 7 games with the Los Angeles Dodgers should hopefully prevent them from making up too much ground. Or, you know, the Mets reduce the magic number with a lot of wins.

A combination of 19 Mets wins and Giants losses will get New York into the postseason. The number can’t go up. With three on their schedule versus the Colorado Rockies to finish the season, remain hopeful the Mets have gotten it down to 0 prior to the last weekend of September.