So was Mets Road Trip Success or Failure?

Before the Mets embarked on this grueling 10-game mostly West Coast road trip, I wrote that they would be lucky to escape with a .500 record. Well, they did indeed go 5-5, so now we can ask — was this trip a success or a failure?

On one hand, it was successful; they managed to win the series in Seattle and split the four-game set in Milwaukee against two strong teams fighting for the playoffs. The Mets end the trip right where they began — five games under .500.

However, they lost the series against a very weak Padres team. And while they are the same five games under .500, the Mets are now eight and a half games out of first place as opposed to seven games out when the second half began. And the Marlins leapfrogged them into third place in the NL East.

So it was a mixed bag, as is common with this Mets team. The Mets are not really in any worse position, but they did not do anything to enhance their standing.

The Mets come home to face a reeling Phillies team for three games and a solid Giants club for four. The Mets can be excused for simply treading water on the road, but now that they are home they have to start winning more than they lose if they want to make an unlikely playoff run.