The New York Mets deserve a lot of credit for getting this far in the postseason. They have been the underdogs all along and their team will only get stronger in the offseason.

However, the players are responsible for coming up short in Game 6 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. With everything on the line, win or go home, the Mets' offense and pitching faltered under pressure.

These are the three main players to blame…

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Sean Manaea posted a 3.7 ERA in 181.2 IP, which was by far a career year for him in 2024. After showing good pitching in the postseason, Manaea faltered in Game 6 of the NLCS to LA, allowing five earned runs in just 2.0 innings pitched. It was his worst outing in recent memory, as the Dodgers had to work quickly with him after forcing him to throw 64 pitches over those two frames.

Despite pitching five innings six days earlier, Manaea's loss of seven innings pitched in the previous seven innings came at the worst possible time for New York, as L.A. quickly picked up the momentum and kept the Mets ahead of one the rest of the way faced a steep climb.

After a career year, it's likely Manaea will opt out of his player option and has just played his final game in a Mets uniform. It wasn't the farewell tour Mets fans had in mind.

In the bottom of the sixth, Ryne Stanek came into the game to add gas to the fire after Jesse Winker failed to score a run in the top half of the inning with the bases loaded. With the Dodgers facing the formidable top of the order, Stanek walked Will Smith, saw Chris Taylor make a sacrifice bunt and then gave up a run on a Shohei Ohtani basehit.

At that point, the Mets were down four runs, and with only nine outs left to play, Ohtani's single felt like a dagger.

Stanek has been one of the Mets' more reliable relievers of late, and it was a huge blow for him to be off his game.

He, too, will head to free agency after a disappointing year in which he posted a 6.06 ERA in a Mets uniform after the trade deadline.

Team captain Carlos Mendoza is the Mets' main culprit for the loss in Game 6. Adding Jeff Mcneil to the lineup was a clueless decision considering he went 0-6 heading into Sunday. Jose Iglesias struggled offensively in the postseason, but seemed to bounce back with a four-game hitting streak and a .267 batting average in the NLCS.

The use of the bullpen was also atrocious for the Mendoza.

In a spot where you really don't want to give up any more runs, struggling Phil Maton was brought in to relieve Manaea in the third inning and promptly gave up a two-run pitch. After Maton's outing, the Mets scored two runs and reduced the deficit to a manageable three runs.

Maton's postseason ERA of 8.53 didn't suggest anyone was in a position to be relied upon despite the pressure of an elimination game. Granted, that 8.53 is exaggerated based on his performance in Game 6, but his seven earned runs in the final 5.2 innings is still a warning sign that you might not want to bring this guy into the game.