New York Mets’ 2025 dream ended on the final Sunday with a 4-0 loss to Miami, wasting a $340M payroll and a late-season push that never materialized into October baseball. They needed a win and a Reds loss to sneak in, but fell short as their postseason odds collapsed from sky-high to zero.

The piece chronicles a season of promise turning ugly: Senga’s hamstring era, the midseason spiral, Montas’ elbow injury, and a deadline haul that didn’t yield playoff magic. It caps with a brutal last act and a franchise left to answer hard questions about roster construction and leadership.

The Mets climbed back into the NL Wild Card hunt with an 8-5 win at Wrigley, riding Lindor and Baty homers, Nimmo’s 3-for-4 day with an RBI and two runs, and a clutch two-run double from Tyrone Taylor to cushion a late push by the Cubs. Seiya Suzuki slugged a pair of homers for Chicago, but McLean’s five earned in 5 1/3 and Diaz’s 28th save kept New York ahead. The win leaves NYM one game behind Cincinnati, while a rookie-award line for McLean could yield an extra draft pick for 2026.

Mets fall 10-3 to the Cubs in a game defined by early control issues and a brutal fifth inning that buried any comeback hopes. Tong never settled, getting knocked around after a shaky third as New York’s bullpen absorbed a heavy workload. Offensively, Francisco Alvarez and Mark Vientos managed late rallies, but the Cubs pulled away with a multi-run outburst and defensive miscues sealing the blowout.

Defensive miscues and wild pitches framed the Mets’ day, with a key error spurring Chicago’s eighth run and a misplayed ball on the bases helping extend the margin. The result matters for NL Wild Card positioning, but fantasy angles lean toward Cubs’ hitters in the right matchups and Mets arms needed to steady the rotation.

Bottom line: the Mets showed flashes late but couldn’t erase the early deficit, leaving fantasy managers weighing dry streaks against upcoming schedules and bullpen plans as the season winds down.