PHILADELPHIA _ As the Mets have waved the white flag on the 2017 season, the team enters the Subway Series in a different state than the past two seasons.
The Mets are all about 2018 now, and figuring out who will be a part of the team.
"We got a little different personality," Mets manager Terry Collins said Sunday.
One player who has his role secured for 2018 is Michael Conforto, the emerging superstar who has become the Mets best player in this lost season.
Conforto hit his 26th homer Sunday in a 6-2 win over the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on Sunday afternoon, and hit three homers in the four-game set.
With the Yankees in need of a series victory as they attempt to reach the playoffs, Conforto stands as the toughest out for the Yankees pitchers in the series. Tuesday's starter, Jacob deGrom, also poses the biggest challenge to the Yankees hitters.
When the teams met last year, Conforto entered the series hitting .221 during what was a disappointing campaign. In one critical at-bat in the series, he fanned against Luis Severino with the bases loaded and two on with the Mets trailing by two.
The outfielder has bounced back from the rough season, and was named to his first All-Star team this year. He's the third player in team history to hit at least 25 homers at the age of 24 or younger joining David Wright and Darryl Strawberry.
Conforto swatted a 1-2 pitch into the right-field seats Sunday to give the Mets a 2-0 lead in the first inning as part of his 1-for-5 day. He now has 64 RBIs and a .968 OPS.
The 24-year-old is the face of the team's offense now as Yoenis Cespedes has endured a rough season, and moved into the cleanup spot Thursday after Jay Bruce was traded. Conforto may also have to step into a leadership role now due to the lack of veterans.
"That's what the guys like Jay Bruce and (Neil )Walker talked to him about, he's certainly the guy down the road, big picture of things, who has to be in the middle of things and have a voice in the clubhouse. Time will tell," Collins said. "Certainly, Michael has that personality. A lot of times leadership is more example than vocally doing something."
As Conforto enters the Subway Series the start of the Mets, he will face off against Yankees slugger and star Aaron Judge for the first time.
One of the top debates this season surrounding the Mets and Yankees has been whether Judge or Conforto is the player to build around spanning the next five years, and this Subway Series can give some temporary bragging rights for that argument.
Conforto has met Judge several times including at the All-Star Game.
"It's not something that I'm focused on," Conforto said of the comparisons. "I know it's out there and it's been a thing all year. Our goal is to go in there and win and I look at that as kind of a distraction so I'm going to stay focused on playing the best I can, executing and not worrying about all that stuff. Just go out there and try to beat them."
The Mets (53-62) enter the series having won three of their last four after the claimed a four-game set with the Phillies. Chris Flexen (2-1) survived five shaky innings.
Collins hopes the games against the Yankees will benefit the team's youngsters.
"When you have young players like we have, if you're going to play at this level, you get exposed to the Yankees-Mets rivalry in this city, you'll get a lot out of it," Collins said. "You'll learn a lot and you'll learn a lot about the intensiveness of Mets fans, New York fans, in general. I think it's important for these young guys to be a part of it."
