This is a mess of the Met$’ own making, with neither Fred nor Jeff Wilpon to blame.

Nevertheless, it seemed for all the world that Billy Eppler was channeling the senior Wilpon’s objective of “playing meaningful games in September,” when the general manager said, “We’re going to have a competitive team [in 2024],” minutes after the Max Scherzer trade to Texas became official on Sunday.

That is quite the humbling internal assessment of where the organization stands 57 games away from the finish line that was supposed to be represented by a ride through the Canyon of Heroes in November.

The Steve Cohen ownership tried to shortcut the championship process through the might of the checkbook — and it failed.

Eppler insisted the Mets, who had traded closer David Robertson for a pair of prospects before dealing Scherzer, are not engaged in, “a fire sale.”

“I do want to be clear that it’s not a rebuild, it’s not a fire sale, it’s not a liquidation,” Eppler said before Justin Verlander gained his 250th career victory in a 5-2 triumph over the Nationals at Citi Field. “Generally, with clubs that are going to go through a rebuild, you have to endure five, six, seven years of losing, and we don’t have the appetite for that.

“We’re not going to do that. What we want to do is use Steve’s investment and enhance the farm system and get us to our larger goal. That doesn’t mean we’re punting 2024, OK? We’re going to have a competitive team.

“Like I said, we just don’t want to endure long stretches of being bad. That’s not going to be satisfying to anybody.”

But when Eppler was asked if the Mets could be competitive if they trade another significant piece or two prior to Tuesday’s 6 p.m. trade deadline, the GM said, “That’s hard to say.”

Verlander, who will turn 41 a month before next season commences, has one more guaranteed year on his deal at $43.3 million plus a $35 million option for 2025 that would be triggered by pitching 140 innings next season and being in good enough health to start 2026 on a major league roster.

He owns a no-trade clause in his contract.

After starting the season and his Mets career on the injured list, the right-hander has emerged as his team’s most reliable starter, his ERA at 1.49 over his last seven starts.

If the Mets have championship aspirations next season, Verlander would not be traded.

Having “a competitive team,” though, does not necessarily align with having the World Series as an objective.

At this stage of his career, Verlander is about winning another championship.

If he has the chance to go to a contender, it sounds like there’s more than a pretty good chance he would take that route.

“Like I’ve said, I’m committed to winning a championship here, but if the organization decides that’s not exactly the direction they think is the best fit to go for it again next year, then I would be more open to [a trade],” said Verlander, who tipped his cap in response to the standing ovation he received when he was removed from the game with one out in the sixth inning. “If I signed a five-, six-, seven-year deal, that’s very different. You’re kind of along for the ride at that point. When you’re doing short-term deals, that changes things.”

The Mets do need to, uh, rebuild their farm system.

But adding pieces that have MLB ETAs from between, say, 2025 and 2027, doesn’t align at all with the current roster.

This is not 1983 when a young core including Doc Gooden, Darryl Strawberry, Ron Darling, Wally Backman, Sid Fernandez and Rafael Santana would meld with veterans to cut a swath through the NL for most of the rest of the decade.

The Mets core consists of thirtyish-someones, including Pete Alonso (29 next season), Jeff McNeill (32), Francisco Lindor (30), Brandon Nimmo (30), and who knows who on the mound? Will they be productive players when newly acquired prospects are ready to make an impact in Queens?

More to the point, will Alonso buy into the vision and sign a long-term extension when he becomes eligible to hit the open market after next season? The Mets may not intend to conduct a liquidation sale, but they may be forced into adopting that strategy between now and spring training.

Eppler said that he does not envision the club being as aggressive in free agency this offseason as they were last winter when the club signed Verlander, Robertson, Kodai Senga, Tommy Pham and Adam Ottavino and re-signed Edwin Diaz and Nimmo.

But there may be no choice.

If being “competitive” is the realistic goal, then forget seducing Shohei Ohtani.

He’s been there and done that his whole career.

But front-line starters Julio Urias, Blake Snell, Aaron Nola, Jordan Montgomery, Jack Flaherty and the like will be out there and the Mets will need arms.

The organization is in no-man’s land with an older roster. They won’t absorb the pain of a rebuild — the Wilpons could have done that — but the hierarchy seems to acknowledge they can’t buy a championship, either.

That leaves the Met$ on a treadmill … maybe a treadmill to oblivion.