Are we allowed to call this a playoff game?
A day after Game 162 went by for 30 teams in MLB, the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets took to the diamond for a doubleheader set to finalize what has been an electric National League wild-card race.
If you thought the race itself was good, then the opening showdown of the day should be put in Cooperstown.
With everything on the line, the two playoff hopefuls reminded fans of just how special, emotional, explosive and perplexing baseball can be in its most high-stakes moments.
The Mets eventually came out on top 8-7 to book their spot in October, but if you just look at the final score, you’re missing out on everything that made the moment so special.
Here’s how it all went down, with some reactions from around the baseball world to boot.
The Braves looked like the dominant side for much of the outing, with Ozzie Albies knocking a two-run homer in the third and Ramon Laureano following it up with a solo shot in the sixth to establish a 3-0 lead.
But the Mets didn’t stay down for long, as the Grimace-fuelled team from Queens rallied back with a six-run eighth inning.
Capping it off was a two-run blast from Brandon Nimmo that gave Mets fans a reason to believe and hope that they’d get back to October for the first time since 2022.
It was nowhere near over yet, as in the bottom half of the eighth, the Braves roared back with a four-run rally of their own to retake the lead at 7-6.
That run was capped off by, you guessed it, Albies.
Did you think it was done? Nothing is over until Francisco Lindor says it’s over.
Though the Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani seems geared to take home the NL MVP award, the Mets shortstop penned one final line for his case, crushing the most clutch two-run homer you’ll ever see to put New York back on top and finish off what will go down as a Certified Cooperstown Classic.