Mets can’t score, but can they make playoffs?

The New York Mets have an incredibly bad offense. To the point that they have scored more than five runs twice since the first week of June. Yet, somehow, they are only a half-game out of the final wild card spot in the National League with a 49-45 record.

New York was supposed to compete for a playoff berth on the back of its starting rotation, and that is exactly the way things have panned out. The Mets have a litany of phenoms in the mound in last season’s Rookie of the Year Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey, Noah Syndergaard and veteran Bartolo Colon, anchoring one of the best staffs in the game.

deGrom made the All-Star team as one of the top pitchers in the league, posting a team-high 10 wins with a2.18 ERA and 120 strikeouts. Harvey has been nothing short of terrific in his own right, notching 12 quality starts in 18 chances with an 8-7 record and 3.19 ERA. While it has not been electric like his 2013 debut, Harvey is still showing why the Mets are incredibly high on his future.

So why might the Mets have trouble making the playoffs? They have the National League’s worst offense.

To be fair, third baseman David Wright is perhaps done for his career with a brutal back injury, spinal stenosis. With Wright out of the lineup, New York does not have many hitters in the middle of the order who can both hit for power and rake for a decent average. In fact, it has absolutely nobody who can do that.

When outfielder Curtis Granderson was signed to a four-year deal, he was supposed to be a major power hitter who could blast balls out of Citi Field. While he is leading the 2015 team in home runs with 14, that is hardly the type of power the Mets were looking for. Outside of Granderson, only two other Mets are even in double-digits for dingers, with Lucas Duda totaling 12 and Wilmer Flores contributing with 10.

Amazingly, Flores leads the outfit with 40 RBI, while center fielder Juan Lagares paces New York with a middling .255 average. On top of that, nobody has stolen even 10 bases. When you have a team with little power, a few key injuries and a complete lack of hitting and speed, it is a devastating combination.

The Mets must get a legitimate bat for the middle of the order, or they will fade into oblivion. It is one thing to need a little help here and there, but this lineup is almost completely barren of any threats. Manager Terry Collins can;t do much with the players he has been given, only left to rely on the pitching to win 3-2 and 2-1 on most nights.

In the end, it will not be enough to nab one of the National League playoff spots.