The Mets are holding onto the final NL wild-card spot by a thread — and one of the teams closing in on them is calling in reinforcements.
On Monday, the San Francisco Giants called up top prospect Bryce Eldridge, the No. 13 prospect in baseball, according to MLB Pipeline.
A 20-year-old outfielder, Eldridge slashed .249/.322/.514 with 18 homers and 63 RBIs across 66 games with Triple-A Sacramento this season.
The club’s first-round draft pick in 2023 was called up after Giants first baseman Dominic Smith landed on the IL with a hamstring strain over the weekend.
Eldridge made his debut Monday night, going 0-for-3 with a strikeout as the designated hitter in San Francisco’s 8-1 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The win moved the Diamondbacks to within 1 1/2 games of the Mets, with the Giants and Reds both sitting two games back of the final NL playoff spot.
San Francisco is making a late playoff push after its hopes once seemed dim.
Despite their shocking acquisition of All-Star slugger Rafael Devers in June, the Giants were well out of the playoff race as late as Aug. 22, sitting seven games below .500 and 7.5 games out a playoff spot.
They then went on a recent 14-7 run to enter the conversation.
The Amazin’s, who have been anything but since mid-June, are partly responsible for the Giants’ recent burst.
The Mets struck a deal with the Giants at the trade deadline, acquiring right-handed reliever Tyler Rogers for righty Jose Butto, pitching prospect Blake Tidwell and outfield prospect Drew Gilbert.
Rogers has been a solid addition to the Mets’ bullpen, posting a 2.14 ERA across 21 innings.
However, Gilbert has rebounded from a slow start and is hitting .302 with a .945 OPS in his last 15 games — injecting new life into the surging Giants’ offense just in time for a last-minute postseason push.
Pressure continues to mount for the Mets (77-73), who recently endured an eight-game losing streak while the rival Philadelphia Phillies clinched the NL East on Monday night.
The Giants, though, have lost three straight and four of five.