:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71373983/1423787330.0.jpg "Mets magic number: How close is New York to clinching NL East division title?")
The New York Mets will make the playoffs. But will they be NL East champs or will they get in as the NL's top Wild Card team? That will be decided as we come down the home stretch of the regular season. Here is the Mets' magic number to clinch a playoff spot as well as a division title.
Mets magic numbers
Playoff berth: 7
NL East title: 17
The Mets would have clinched a playoff spot already if they had just taken care of business recently against inferior competition. But after losing a handful of games to sub-.500 teams – including a three-game sweep at Citi Field at the hands of the Cubs – New York has some work to do. Beginning with Thursday's series opener versus the Pirates, nine of the Mets' next 12 games will come against similar also-ran squads before they meet the Braves for a marquee three-game set in Atlanta from Sept. 30-Oct. 2.