Five of ESPN. Baltimore Orioles Pro Shop .coms MLB beat writers who cover teams battling for wild-card berths were asked to make a case for why their team will be playing a do-or-die playoff game in October. Below, Adam Rubin argues for the New York Mets against fellow writers Eddie Matz (Baltimore Orioles), Andrew Marchand (New York Yankees), Katie Strang (Detroit Tigers) and Mark Saxon (St. Louis Cardinals).For more on the other contenders, check out Wild-card Wednesday.?Rubin: Forget the fact that the Mets are among the hottest teams in baseball, having won 16 of 21 games entering this week. The Mets will reach the postseason as a wild-card entrant primarily because of their soft schedule the remainder of the season. After completing a series on Wednesday against the Nationals, the Mets do not play another game against a team that currently has a winning record. Meanwhile, the Cardinals and Giants - the Mets two main competitors for the NLs two wild-card spots -- have to play each other four times beginning Thursday. The Cardinals also have two series remaining against the Cubs, while the Giants have two series remaining against the Dodgers.Marchand: The biggest reason not to believe in the Mets is because they are the Mets. Their tortured history is replete with epic failures in the face of victories. Could one more be on the horizon?Matz: As my mother will tell you, Im a good boy who follows directions, and my marching orders here were to shoot a hole in every one of these theories (except mine, of course). To do that, Im calling on my experience with logic puzzles back in Mrs. Harris fifth-grade math class. If the Mets and Cardinals arent wild cards (which, per my instructions, they cant be), then the wild cards must be the second-place NL West team (Giants or Dodgers), and the ... Marlins?Saxon: When you put it that way, its kind of hard to argue. I guess Ill just go with, Its the Mets, Adam, and leave it at that.Strang: Heading into spring training, I picked the Mets to win it all this year, and a big reason was their stable of impressive young pitchers. Fast-forward six months and the staff looks, well, quite a bit different. No Matt Harvey. No Jacob deGrom. No Steven Matz. That certainly hasnt seemed to hurt the Mets lately, but even with a crazy-favorable schedule to finish out the season, one has to wonder whether the sum of all the injuries -- and not just those to the pitching staff -- will eventually take its toll. Baltimore Orioles Gear . Nigeria beat surprise package Ethiopia 2-0 in the second leg of their playoff for a comfortable 4-1 aggregate victory. Victor Moses converted a 20th-minute penalty after an Ethiopian handball, and Victor Obinna made certain of Nigerias place in Brazil with his powerful free kick in the 82nd at UJ Esuene Stadium. Custom Baltimore Orioles Jerseys .S. -- Nikolaj Ehlers registered a hat trick for the third straight game and Jonathan Drouin had a goal and five assists as the Halifax Mooseheads hammered the host Cape Breton Screaming Eagles 10-1 on Tuesday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. https://www.cheaporioles.com/ .Y. -- Jayna Hefford scored the winning goal Friday as Canada survived a scare with a 4-3 win over Sweden at the Four Nations womens hockey tournament. GLENDALE, Ariz. -- A few hours after reports surfaced that Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald was telling people close to him that 2016 would be his final season, the future Hall of Famer caught his 100th career touchdown, landing him in the top 10 on the NFLs all-time touchdown reception list.But Fitzgerald isnt looking to quit climbing that list any time soon.On Sunday morning, NFL Network reported that Fitzgerald was telling people close to him that he was retiring after the season.During his postgame news conference, however, Fitzgerald said he hasnt thought about 2017.You know, I dont talk about the future, Fitzgerald said. I dont even know what Im having for dinner tonight, let alone what Im doing next year. I signed another year for a reason. I believe in what were doing here. I believe in the guys that I have in this room, the head coach [Bruce Arians], his staff. Obviously, [Cardinals president] Michael Bidwill is doing everything he can to put us in a position to win.Thats where my mindset is at. What Im doing next year is of no importance. This is the year. And I want to make sure we maake it great. Orioles Jerseys China. Fitzgerald did his part in Arizonas 23-21 loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday, but Arians said the Cardinals werent properly prepared.We were obviously not ready to play, Arians said. They outplayed us, and we will learn from it.Fitzgerald caught his 99th touchdown on a 3-yard pass from quarterback Carson Palmer late in the second quarter, which tied him for 10th all time with Don Hutson, who played from 1935 to 1945.Fitzgeralds 100th score came on a dramatic over-the-head diving catch on a fade from Palmer that gave the Cardinals their first lead of the game, 21-20, early in the fourth quarter. Fitzgerald finished the game tied for eighth all time on the touchdown list with Steve Largent and Tim Brown.Next on the list is San Diego Chargers tight end Antonio Gates, who owns sole possession of seventh place with 104 touchdowns.But Fitzgerald said he was glad to have his 100th.Im glad to put it behind me so I dont have to talk about it anymore, he said. ' ' '