Brandon Nimmo froze at home plate and uncorked a well-earned fist pump.
Nimmo had just rounded the bases with a go-ahead home run against former teammate Zack Wheeler, delivering one of the biggest hits yet in a Mets season filled with clutch theatrics.
The sixth-inning solo shot put the Mets ahead, 2-1, over the Phillies, energizing a sold-out Citi Field crowd of 43,139 that provided a playoff-like atmosphere.
That proved to be the final score in a Mets win with significant postseason ramifications.
With the victory, the Mets (87-69) moved into a tie with the Diamondbacks for the second National League Wild Card spot, while maintaining their two-game lead over the Braves for the final Wild Card position.
The Mets and Braves begin a potentially pivotal three-game series in Atlanta on Tuesday night.
The Mets took three of four from the first-place Phillies, preventing their rival from clinching the NL East at Citi Field.
Sunday’s win required some heavy lifting. Wheeler, a former top Mets prospect who spent 2013-19 with the team, entered the game with a 16-6 record and a 2.56 ERA, positioning him for his third top-six finish in NL Cy Young voting in four years.
Tyrone Taylor’s second-inning RBI single was the only offense the Mets had managed against the ace through five innings – until Nimmo’s blast barely cleared the right-field wall.
The hard-throwing Wheeler held the Mets to two earned runs over seven-plus innings, striking out eight.
Those two runs were enough for the Mets, who deployed four pitchers to limit the Phillies’ loaded lineup.
Equipped with an overpowering fastball, Mets starter Tylor Megill allowed only one run over four innings and struck out six. He boasts a 1.78 ERA in five starts since being recalled from Triple-A Syracuse on Aug. 30 to replace the injured Paul Blackburn.
Phil Maton then pitched two scoreless innings in relief, and Jose Butto hurled another before closer Edwin Diaz nailed down a tense six-out save.
Diaz stranded a runner at third base in the eighth and ninth innings. The ninth was particularly dramatic, with the Phillies putting runners on second and third with two outs, but Diaz struck out a swinging Kody Clemens with a 98.3 mph fastball to finish off the game.
Saturday’s 6-3 victory over the Phillies featured similar heroes, with Nimmo’s seventh-inning RBI single proving to be the game-winner and Diaz getting the final four outs.
Sunday marked the Mets’ last home game of the regular season. They went 6-1 on their final home stand, despite being without star shortstop Francisco Lindor, who missed his seventh consecutive game Sunday with lower-back discomfort.
Adding to the drama was the attention surrounding Pete Alonso, an impending free agent who may have been playing his final home game in a Mets uniform.
Alonso received a standing ovation during his first-inning at-bat, which he acknowledged by raising his helmet to the cheering crowd.
Chants of “Pete A-lon-so” filled the air during each of Alonso’s at-bats. He finished 0-for-4 with three strikeouts.
The Mets are off Monday before beginning a six-game road trip to end the regular season. If they can continue their hot play in Atlanta, a return to the playoffs for the first time since 2022 just might be on the horizon.
