Nevertheless, the Mets’ absence in the playoffs now creates a void for those who wanted to see more Mets baseball in October. There will still be baseball, but now fans will have to find other teams to support in the meantime. With the field now narrowed down to six (sorry, Carlos Beltran), what should be the preferred rooting order?

6. Los Angeles Dodgers

Former Mets: Justin Turner

No, absolutely not. They have Chase Utley, not to mention a couple other former Phillies who gave fans headaches. It would be hard for a team that isn’t in the NL East to take the bottom spot on this list, but that’s the power of Utley. Not even Turner’s glorious red locks can come close to making up for that. There’s also the fact that their World Series title drought is roughly as long as the Mets’ and they simply can’t be allowed to snap it before the Mets snap theirs.

5. Washington Nationals

Former Mets: Daniel Murphy, Oliver Perez

It was disappointing enough that the Mets couldn’t surge ahead of the Nats late this year as they did in late 2015, but that’s the wisdom of gradually dropping Matt Williams, Drew Storen, and Jonathan Papelbon from the organization. There is no sense in cheering for the primary division rival. It’s not quite to the crazy level of a Cardinals fan pulling for the Cubs or a Yankees fan hoping the Red Sox can survive, but the point still stands. Sorry, Murph.

4. San Francisco Giants

Former Mets: Angel Pagan

The team that knocked the Mets out only ranking third-worst here is a testament to the grim reality of the field. However, #EvenYearBullshit can be only be tolerated so much, particularly since Bumgarner almost single-handedly eliminated the Mets, save for a three-run blast from a classic “who?” Giants hero, Conor Gillaspie. They’ve won enough. It’s time for someone else.

Knowing the Giants, there is a very low chance that this season doesn’t end with Eduardo Nunez proudly holding the World Series MVP.

3. Chicago Cubs

Former Mets: None

The Cubs are the last NL team to be mentioned, but only because the idea of a championship for them is not as bad as it would be for the other three clubs. Like the since-eliminated Red Sox, they do have that awesome young core, and it’s not like they caused any problems for the Mets last year en route to their NL pennant. So as fun as it would be to see that championship drought continue, they’re palatable enough to make them the best NL option, despite Joe Maddon’s cutesy quirks.

2. Toronto Blue Jays

Former Mets: Ezequiel Carrera (minors), Jose Bautista (lol)

When this offense is rolling (as they did in the ALDS), it’s a lot of fun to watch, as the Blue Jays have tons of dinger threats. It’s kind of unbelievable that they had to settle for a Wild Card. It is incredibly difficult to find relief in this lineup, as Josh Donaldson, Edwin Encarnacion, and Jose Bautista provide formidable threats right in the heart of it, and both Russell Martin and Troy Tulowitzki had 20 homers this year, as well. The fan base has had its ugly moments, and Donaldson has been a bit hyper-sensitive about remotely close pitches. They still aren’t a bad option, especially for those unenthused by the NL crop.

1. Cleveland Indians

Former Mets: None

Numbers one and two can be easily flip-flopped. The Indians’ whole brand is pretty gross, from the name to Chief Wahoo to fan behavior. If the team was named anything else, this would be a no-doubter. Pretend they’re called the Fightin’ Franconas.

The Fightin’ Franconas just have a tremendously entertaining team, with terrific defense from the likes of Francisco Lindor and an underrated offense led by Carlos Santana, Mike Napoli, and up-and-comers Tyler Naquin and Jose Ramirez. The pitching would be even more tremendous if they were at full strength, but watching Corey Kluber robotically mow through lineups is all the fun of Bumgarner without it actually being Bumgarner.

Also, Terry Francona has expertly managed the bullpen and is willing to use super-reliever Andrew Miller in just about any spot, even as early as the fifth inning. It’s refreshing to see both a manager embrace that fireman role, and for the pitcher himself to fully support it. They have the longest title drought in the AL at 68 years. Maybe it would nicer if they broke it next year, but the Fightin’ Franconas are a fine pick.

Photo Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

Noah Syndergaard unleashed his shiny new hammer of a slider and the Mets won 2-0.

A 95 MPH…Slider?

The Royals didn’t get multiple runners on base until the sixth inning. With the crowd revved up, Syndergaard threw four straight balls for his only walk of the afternoon. It felt like we were about to watch another one of those moments where the Mets let a lead slip away to Kansas City. Dan Warthen came out to remind Syndergaard that he had been able to overpower the Royals with runners on base, striking out the first five hitters he faced in these high leverage situations. He just needed one more out. Syndergaard fired three straight sliders past Kendrys Morales: 93, 95 and 93 miles per hour.

If you read my colleague Jarrett Seidler’s preview of Syndergaard’s pitches, you wouldn’t be surprised to see Syndergaard using the slider as a primary offspeed pitch. We know the Warthen slider is tighter and has more velocity than most sliders. But I’m not sure any of us have seen a radar gun flash 95 for a slider with the bases loaded! It made Syndergaard’s 98.2 MPH fastball and 99.5 MPH sinker (per Brooks Baseball) feel like secondary pitches today.  Afternoons like this make Thor look like one of the frontrunners for the Cy Young Award. I never want to make too much out of one game, but seeing another Noah with great stuff is really cool.

Some Redemption?

The Royals dropped several hints about retaliating for Syndergaard’s pitch in Game 3 of the World Series during the offseason, but there were no brushbacks or dirty play today. The Mets didn’t even have to stand on field and watch Kansas City’s second day of ceremonies. For the most part, today’s game felt like game 2 of a 162 game season instead of Sunday’s continuation of a painful World Series where seemingly everything that could go wrong did go wrong.

All the World Series déjà vu came back in the ninth, with Lorenzo Cain leading off. Jeurys Familia, who blew three saves last October, hadn’t looked good during spring training. If he struggled today, you never know when Mets fans would hit the panic button. (No, wait, some Mets fans were panicking over David Wright after one game. I’ll get back to him.) Fortunately, Familia struck Cain out, then got two ground balls to have a relatively drama free 9th. The bullpen combined for three innings without allowing a baserunner.

A Bizarro Pitching Duel:

It feels odd to characterize this game as a pitching duel. Noah Syndergaard threw nasty stuff for most of the game. The Royals, on the other hand, turned to former Met Chris Young, who PECOTA projects to have a -0.1 WARP this season. Young’s fastball hovered at 88 MPH for most of the game and he walked three guys over five innings of three-hit ball. In a smaller ballpark like Yankee Stadium, Chris Young would get shelled and be out of the game. But in Kansas City, Young was able to play to the big outfield and speedy outfielders for three innings. Yoenis Cespedes opened the fourth inning with a walk and Neil Walker pulled a mistake for a home run to right for the only scoring play of the game. Both teams struggled seeing the ball through late afternoon shadows in the later innings and went 0-7 with runners in scoring position. Maybe 3:15 p.m. local is a bad time to start a baseball game?

Step Away From The Panic Button:

After David Wright’s weak throw on Sunday night, some of the more nervous Mets fans wondered if Wright would ever be spry again. Like most things in baseball, RELAX! It’s just one game. When Wright was healthy and stealing 20 bases a year, his first inning walk would have been a prime opportunity to run. But Gary, Keith and Ron thought Wright’s days of stealing bases were behind him. Naturally, Wright stole second on the next pitch, as well as another steal in the fifth. It wasn’t a completely positive game for the third baseman though: Wright double-clutched on a potential double play ball in the sixth that helped the Royals maintain their only scoring threat.

Welcome Back Jim Henderson:

After being out of the big leagues in 2015 and most of 2014, Jim Henderson pitched a scoreless 7th inning, racking up got six whiffs on 13 pitches. If Henderson stays hot, I’d expect him to keep getting higher leverage assignments as opposed to being a mop up guy at the end of the bullpen.

What’s Next:

Two days off, then the home opener Friday night. Hopefully with warmer conditions! No word yet on whether Jacob DeGrom will start or be away as his wife gives birth.

Photo credit: Denny Medley-USA Today Sports