The Mets are back to being, well, the Mets

These Mets are nowhere close to that pace. Their .321 winning percentage — while tied for the worst among MLB teams this season — has the Mets on track to finish 52-109.

For whatever that’s worth.

Any time that 1962 team creeps into the conversation, it’s not a good thing. But those bumbling ‘62 Mets are now looked back upon somewhat fondly, because seven years later, the Amazin’ Mets were born.

Improbably, everything came together for the 1969 Mets, who delivered not only the franchise’s first-ever winning season, but surged all the way to the organization’s first World Series championship.

That 1969 run perfectly encapsulates the Mets’ history as a whole: Lovable underdogs who, every now and then, pull off an incredible feat out of nowhere.

The last such occasion occurred in 2024 when, after beginning the season 22-33, the Mets rallied to an 89-73 record and all the way to Game 6 of the NLCS.

Unlikely heroes such as Jose Iglesias, Grimace and the Playoff Pumpkin emerged along the way, helping to fuel a storybook season in which Pete Alonso clubbed one of the biggest home runs in Mets history.

But those extreme highs typically come in between years of lows, and the present-day Mets are in a different phase of their life cycle.

Last year, the Mets collapsed in the season’s second half and missed the playoffs, just like they did in 2007 and 2008.

Last offseason, the Mets parted with fan-favorite staples such as Alonso, Edwin Diaz and Brandon Nimmo, similar to when they traded away Tom Seaver in 1977 or when they broke up the core of their 1986 championship team later that decade.

The stakes are different these days, considering the commitments the Mets made to Soto (15 years, $765 million), Francisco Lindor (10 years, $341 million), Bo Bichette (three years, $126 million) and others.

But the results are oh so familiar.

“We’re gonna fight like crazy to try to get back on track,” said right-handed phenom Nolan McLean (1-2, 2.55 ERA), whose lack of run support is eerily similar to what Jacob deGrom used to experience.

“We’re a bunch of highly competitive dudes. Nobody enjoys losing and going out there and not performing the way we think we should.”

The Mets’ rough start isn’t just the result of underperformance. Soto missed 15 games due to a calf strain, then returned on the same day Lindor injured his calf. Opening Day cleanup hitter Jorge Polanco is sidelined with wrist and Achilles issues.

But juggernauts, these Mets are not. Maybe they were never meant to be.

And as history shows, the Mets are prone to surprise you, especially when you expect it the least.

“Sometimes things don’t go your way,” Soto said. “You’ve just got to keep it as you are: a professional. Keep your head up and keep moving forward.”