The Mets, meanwhile, sold at the deadline — dealing bullpen pieces like Luke Weaver, Huascar Brazobán, Brooks Raley and A.J. Minter — and have been reshaping their relief corps with unproven arms ever since. It's been a step down from the preseason expectations New York carried into the year, and Saturday is one more game in a September that's more about evaluation than the standings.
Both teams enter this stretch banged up and unsettled at key spots. The Giants are also without starters Adrian Houser, Carson Whisenhunt and Trevor McDonald for the year, on top of the position-player losses, which has forced San Francisco to piece together a lineup and rotation on the fly. New York has its own issues in the bullpen, with Devin Williams still working back from a shoulder injury and Jorge Polanco out for the season.
Neither club is playing for October at this point, which is exactly what makes late-season series like this one worth watching in a different way — it's about who on both rosters looks like part of the next good team, not this one.