Jeff Passan throws out a scenario that would be absolutely crazy for anyone else but Lou Pinella.
Were Lou Piniella the scheming type – and, well, he’s been around long enough, in the game and in Chicago, to understand that a little bit of maneuvering is encouraged – he could influence the entire NL playoff scene. If the Cubs prefer playing the Phillies, Piniella could cobble together a lineup of Micah Hoffpauir, Casey McGehee, Koyie Hill, Daryle Ward and others for the four-game series against the Mets starting Monday, then end the regular season against Milwaukee with his regular lineup. Mets win the division; Phillies get the wild card; Brewers out. Or they may prefer the Mets to the Phillies.I honestly wounld not put that past old Lou. But knowing the Mets, they'd still lose to a bunch of September call-ups and really screw things up.
As plausible as it is, I can't see Pinella trotting out a team of young guys. Maybe a mix and match, resting some of his key players for the playoffs by giving them a day or two off, but not much more than that.
You never know, though. All the Mets need to do is win. Win, and they control their own destiny. It's a simple concept, but they still haven't been able to grasp it.
As I said last night, the Mets had an awful day yesterday, and slipped in both the NL East and Wild Card standings. Tonight, we are all Braves fans, as the Phillies kick off a three game series at home. The Brewers have today off, but tomorrow we all should be rooting for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Go Braves. Go Pirates. Go Mets.