Pirates fans won't forgive Mets for letting NL Central rivals sneak into playoff bracket

Ever since the Pittsburgh Pirates were mathematically eliminated from the playoffs on Sept. 15, Pirates fans have had one eye on the offseason and the other eye on the Cincinnati Reds. As a realistic shot at the playoffs emerged for Cincinnati in September, Pirates fans collectively slouched in their chairs with sunken hearts, praying that their bitter division rivals would fall short in the end.

Sure, Pirates fans are hardened from so many failed seasons, but they are also used to the comfort of the Reds often providing their team company at the bottom of the standings, or at least outside of the playoff picture.

Last season, for instance, the Reds and Pirates finished the MLB season just one game apart at the bottom of the NL Central barrel (Pittsburgh was dead last). A similar -- though worse -- outcome manifested in 2022, with both clubs finishing 62-100. From 2017 to 2019, the Reds and Pirates finished as the two worst NL Central teams for three straight seasons.

To be clear, Cincinnati does have a significant edge over Pittsburgh. Since the NL Central was founded in 1994, the Reds have won three division titles (most recently in 2012) to Pittsburgh's zero. This, of course, only makes Pirates fans more resentful.

Pittsburgh hasn't celebrated a divisional pennant since the Pirates won three straight NL East titles from 1990 to 1992 (before joining the NL Central). The Pirates are the only NL Central team that's never won the division.

Even so, Pittsburgh fans have seldom been alone in their misery, with Reds fans being their most frequent partner in mediocrity (or worse).

However, as the Reds popped champagne on Sunday after clinching a Wild Card berth, Pirates fans actually had another team to direct their ire toward: the New York Mets.

Pirates fans have every reason to despise the Mets right now

The Reds and their fan base are obviously viewing this postseason berth as an achievement mostly of their own making. This is a team that grabbed opportunity by the horns and willed itself into the playoffs, people in Cincinnati are saying.

It's a worthy narrative for a club and manager that is undeniably worthy of playoff baseball. At the same time, Cincinnati's opportunity was only made possible due to a collapse of epic proportions by the Mets, who, up until very recently, were a shoo-in for the third NL Wild Card spot that the Reds are now riding into the postseason.

While we're discussing playoff-worthy teams, the 2025 Mets were not one. New York and its star-studded roster underperformed dramatically in the final phase of the season, going 11-17 in August and 10-15 in September. The Mets lost an astounding eight games in a row at the start of September, and they lost five of their last eight to blow the Wild Card.

It gets worse. With the Reds losing to the Milwaukee Brewers in game No. 162 on Sunday, the Mets would have survived and advanced into the postseason if they'd merely taken care of business against the lowly Miami Marlins. That, of course, did not happen.

Had the Mets simply done the bare minimum over the last few weeks, grinning Pirates fans would have been raising their glasses on Sunday to the Reds' failed season, and everything about 2025 would have felt normal and okay.

Instead, the Mets' profound failures have led to momentary glory in Cincinnati, which has only made Pirates fans feel lonelier than ever at the bottom.