Braves-Mets postponed: When will NL Wild Card-deciding series restart?

The stage was set for perhaps the biggest series we'll see all season long to be played between the New York Mets and the Atlanta Braves. A spot in the postseason was on the line, and the victor of the three-game set could easily be the team that makes it to October.

Game 1 of the series was all Atlanta. Michael Harris II had one of the best games of his young career, Spencer Schwellenbach pitched a gem, and the Braves bullpen closed out a convincing 5-1 win. The Mets were hoping for revenge in Game 2 against likely NL Cy Young Award winner Chris Sale, but Mother Nature would have no part of that.

Not only was Wednesday's game postponed but Thursday's game was as well, as Hurricane Helene is nearing landfall. This is a major inconvenience for everyone involved, yet it feels as if it was entirely avoidable with this weather being easily predictable.

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Crucial Braves-Mets series set to resume in doubleheader on Monday, Sept. 30

According to Joel Sherman of the NY Post, a doubleheader featuring these two NL East rivals is set to take place on Monday, September 30, beginning at 1:10 p.m. ET. The regular season was supposed to end the day before, but it will be extended for both teams if it has to be.

According to Sherman, games will only be played if they have to for one or both teams for playoff reasons. This means that if both of their fates are sealed, the games would not be played.

It cannot be overstated just how much of an inconvenience this is for both sides. The Braves had their two best pitchers, Chris Sale and Max Fried, lined up to face the Mets. Assuming they pitch in their weekend series against the Kansas City Royals, it's highly unlikely that they'll be available for Monday's doubleheader which could easily dictate Atlanta's season.

On New York's side, their inconvenience mainly has to do with travel. The Mets are going from Atlanta to Milwaukee to play a three-game series and then might have to go back to Atlanta to finish their season before traveling elsewhere for a postseason series immediately, if they make it.

Even if one or both of these teams make the postseason thanks to Monday's results, the postseason begins on Tuesday. This means that one or both of these teams will have to travel to Milwaukee, Los Angeles, or San Diego for a three-game series with no rest and presumably very tired pitching staffs.

Had the Braves organization not been inflexible prior to the series, perhaps we wouldn't have been in this mess. Now, what both of these teams are likely rooting for is a collapse from the Arizona Diamondbacks, ensuring that they both make it to the postseason and do not have to play in Monday's doubleheader.