The Mets are in a great position this year to make the postseason for the first time since 2006. That’s 9 years of futility and below-average baseball. The way that the NLCS ended all those years ago is aligned with how the team played for the next near-decade; playing well for small stretches, then surrendering blows that they could not come back from (thanks, Yadier Molina). With that being said, wouldn’t it be nice if we could get a do-over of that 7 game series? Imagine if Carlos Beltran had ripped a game-tying single with the bases loaded and two outs in the ninth? Then Carlos Delgado, with 38 regular season homers that year, capped off a dramatic win with a 3-run walk-off homer? Welcome to the world of “what if?”

The Mets enter as the odds-on favorite to win that World Series, even on the road against the Detroit Tigers. They beat up on rookie Justin Verlander in Game 1 due to his lack of playoff experience and poise in tough situations. Tom Glavine stifles the Tigers lineup just like he did to the Cardinals in the opener of the NLCS. John Maine can’t hold it together in Game 2, giving up homers to Magglio Ordonez and Sean Casey that serve as the big blows, while Kenny Rogers pitches 7 innings of one run ball. A slugfest ensues in Game 3, as neither Steve Trachsel nor Nate Robertson pitch well. The Mets’ bridge serves its team better than the Tigers’ does, as Wil Ledezma serves up a two-run double to Paul LoDuca to break the 6-6 tie. Darren Oliver, Guillermo Mota and Billy Wagner hold down the final 3 innings for the Mets.

From there, the Mets cruise to two wins as they beat up on Jeremy Bonderman and and Jeff Weaver to take their first World Series title since 1986. Carlos Beltran is named MVP, as he hits 3 homers and drives in upwards of 10 runs in an offensive-minded series. That offseason now becomes one for the ages for the Mets, who bolster their aging rotation by outbidding the Red Sox for Japanese star Daisuke Matsuzaka, who is drooling at the chance to play for a team with this kind of offense. They decide to hold onto Heath Bell and Royce Ring to keep the bullpen fresh for several years to come. Moises Alou comes over to replace Cliff Floyd, essentially getting a more consistent version of Floyd.

The 2007 season then goes slightly more favorable for the Mets than it actually did. David Wright has an MVP-caliber season, surrounded by key role players like Alou, LoDuca, who hits just under .300. Beltran and Delgado hit 30 homers each, and Jose Reyes hits around .320 out of the leadoff spot. The pitching is now a 4-headed monster with Pedro Martinez and Orlando Hernandez returning from injury, Tom Glavine, who wins his 300th game, John Maine, who learns from the older and more successful arms on the staff, and Matsuzaka, who benefits from pitching against weaker National League hitters and poses a good rookie campaign.

Instead of collapsing, the Mets roll to another NL East title with another 95+ win campaign, and they steamroll back into the NLCS, where they beat the Colorado Rockies, whose meager pitching staff is not match for the Mets’ high-powered offense. Tom Glavine and Matsuzaka thrive under the pressure of making it to another World Series.

From there, they face the Boston Red Sox, who are seeking to win their second World series title in 4 years. This series is a pitching duel, with Boston sending out Curt Schilling, Jon Lester, and Josh Beckett in the first three games, compared to New York’s Glavine, Martinez, and Hernandez. Matsuzaka pitches well against the team who just barely lost the bidding war for him as the Mets take a 3-1 series lead. It’s back to Glavine and Schilling in the decisive game 5, but neither of their aging arms hold up well from short rest. In an offensive show, the Mets pound on Schilling early, and score key insurance runs in the late innings off of Hideki Okajima in the 8th inning thanks to back-to-back homers by Beltran and Delgado. They take their second straight WS title.

It is difficult to tell what can happen from there. Too many variables come into play, perhaps a managerial change, a revolving door of players coming and going that happened in real life but may not have been so in this scenario. Consider this: If the Mets did win consecutive titles, the nucleus of Reyes, Wright, and Beltran could have stayed together for at least another 6 or 7 years, when in actuality only Wright remains on the team.

It is great to think of “What If?”, but it’s even better to think of “What Will?”. The Mets have a good core again, this time of outstanding pitching, that can lead them to glory (maybe) like the old nucleus could not.