The New York Mets are standing at a familiar crossroads: talented, competitive, but missing the one thing that can anchor a postseason run — a true ace. Kodai Senga, when healthy, can flash brilliance worthy of that title, but durability has been an issue. Behind him, the rotation is made up of solid contributors like Sean Manaea, Tylor Megill, and David Peterson — talented arms, but not the kind who change the temperature of a season. Brandon Sproat, Jonah Tong, and, particularly, Nolan McLean eventually could, but they are too young and inexperienced to be called true workhorses.

The Mets’ reluctance to chase a front-line pitcher at the summer’s trade deadline likely cost them October baseball. That mistake won’t be repeated. With the offseason approaching, all signs point to the front

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