With seven games left in their season, the Mets are mathematically eliminated from playoff contention and have nothing to play for but pride.
But as the last week of the season unfolds, there is something of high importance that is still unresolved.
Because the Mets failed to sign Kumar Rocker after drafting him in the first round of the 2021 MLB Draft, they received a compensation pick (at No. 11) in the 2022 MLB Draft.
That compensation pick is protected no matter what, but the Mets’ other 2022 first-round pick will only be protected if it is in the top 10.
And entering play on Sept. 27, the Mets’ other pick would be No. 12.
If that pick remains outside the top 10, the Mets would surrender it in the event they sign a free agent this offseason who is tied to a qualifying offer, with Carlos Correa, Corey Seager, Robbie Ray, and others expected to fall under that category.
That means that the Mets should be rooting for the teams in front of them in the draft order to win in bunches over the final week of the season.
The Mets (73-82) are 2.0 games clear of both the Colorado Rockies (71-84 and holding the No. 10 pick) and Kansas City Royals (71-84 and holding the No. 9 pick). They are a half game ahead of the Angels (74-82) for No. 13.
New York is 4.5 games better than the Minnesota Twins (69-87 and in position for the No. 8 pick), so passing them is highly unlikely.
Meanwhile, the Mets could theoretically fall as low as the No. 16 pick. But that would take lots of winning by them and lots of losing by the San Diego Padres, who are in position for that pick and are 78-78.
The odds are on the Mets finishing somewhere between the No. 9 pick and the No. 14 pick, and a big part of their offseason strategy could hang in the balance.