Nearly halfway through the 2023 season, the most expensive team in Major League Baseball history is closer to last place than first. After a dispiriting 7-6 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday, the Mets and their nearly $500 million roster — once luxury taxes are considered — were left with a 35-42 record, dwindling odds of reaching the playoffs and a growing number of questions.
The Mets have won only five more games than the Washington Nationals, a franchise mired in a rebuild and, for the moment, the only team keeping them off the bottom of the National League East.