NEW YORK -- If the Mets intend to make any sort of last-ditch run at the National League East title, the opportunity is right in front of them.

It won’t be easy for a team that entered Monday’s play seven games out of first place with 32 to play. FanGraphs’ playoff odds calculator gave New York a 9.1 percent chance to pass the Phillies. Another popular projection system, PECOTA , estimated the Mets’ chances at just 3.7 percent.

But games aren’t played on computers, and the Mets also entered Monday’s play with seven games remaining head-to-head against the team they’re chasing. They proceeded to win the first of them in convincing fashion, breaking out for double-digit runs in a 13-3 drubbing of the Phillies at Citi Field.

Once again, the Mets received a brief and ineffective start

See Full Page