The pressing questions Mets face as disappointing season comes to close

Starting Tuesday at Fenway Park, the Mets have 12 games left in a season that started as promising and will almost certainly finish as disappointing.

Mathematically, they still have a shot at the playoffs. Their elimination number in the NL East was nine games entering Monday, meaning any combination of nine Mets losses and/or Braves wins will officially end their postseason hopes.

A dismal 1-5 week against the Cardinals and Phillies all but ended that dream, and the Braves going 1-4 in the same stretch only stings more. That kept their NL East deficit at 5 ½ games as of Monday afternoon, making the final two weeks of the season largely about questions surrounding the future instead of whether the Mets win or lose.

“I want to see them finishing strong, playing hard, being winning players,” said manager Luis Rojas, whose own future beyond this season is very much in question, especially with a new president of baseball operations set to be hired.

Besides the scoreboard, here’s what to watch for over the final two weeks:

What happens with Noah Syndergaard and Jacob deGrom?

Both pitchers have been rehabbing with hopes of getting back into games before the season ends, though the original goal of contributing to a playoff push appears to be lost.

Syndergaard, who hasn’t pitched since 2019 because of Tommy John surgery with his comeback delayed by elbow inflammation and then COVID-19, could be back as soon as this week. He did not have enough time to build up as a starter and also is not throwing breaking balls because of his elbow issues.

How the right-hander looks is a big unknown, especially as he is set to become a free agent.

Meanwhile, deGrom hasn’t pitched since July 7 because of a UCL sprain, but the Mets have remained insistent on the idea of him pitching again this season as long as he is healthy. He has advanced to pitching off the “mid-slope,” according to Rojas, but still has to progress to the full slope and then face live hitters before he could be cleared.

At this point, deGrom’s comeback might be more about the ace proving to himself that he is healthy entering the offseason than anything else.

The right fielder has been better over the past month-plus, but he still enters Tuesday batting .223 with a 97 OPS-plus — hardly the season he expected, especially on the eve of free agency.

Conforto said last week it has crossed his mind that he could be in his final weeks with the organization that drafted him in 2014. What kind of impression will he leave over the last 12 games before he has to decide whether to take a qualifying offer, assuming the Mets offer him one?

Does Javier Baez make a strong case to stay in Queens?

Since coming over in a trade from the Cubs, Baez has been one of the Mets’ most productive hitters, batting .305 with nine home runs and a 157 OPS-plus. There are also the 40 strikeouts in 147 plate appearances, which is to be expected with a free swinger like Baez.

Have the Mets seen enough to offer Baez a big contract to play next to his longtime friend, Francisco Lindor? Or will Baez have to go elsewhere to land the big money?

Can Jeff McNeil finish on a high?

A good final month might not make or break his future with the Mets, but McNeil is starting to look more like the hitter he has been for most of his career. After a game-winning home run Sunday, he was batting .306 with a .789 OPS over his last 14 games.

“The guy we saw [Sunday], that’s the Jeff we know,” Rojas said.

Second base in 2022 figures to be in flux with the looming return of Robinson Cano and the potential return of Baez. But if McNeil gets back to hitting the way he can, his bat will play somewhere