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After the first 18 games of their season, Terry Collins and the Mets stood at 5-13. After the first 18 games of their season, Joe Girardi and the Yankees stood at 12-6.
It means that since then — even without David Wright, even without Ike Davis, even without the Jason Bay they thought they were getting, even without an ace like CC Sabathia, even without stable ownership — the 39-39 Mets have been every bit as good (34-26) as the 45-31 Yankees (33-25). Without A-Rod. Without Mark Teixiera. Without Curtis Granderson. Without Mariano Rivera. Without Robinson Cano. Without a $200 million payroll.
But is this a playoff team?
“I wouldn’t see why not,” Daniel Murphy told The Post. “If we keep winning series, we’re gonna be exactly where we want to be.”
Who are these guys, and why are they still knocking on the wild-card door?
They are predominantly no-names: Turner and Tejada and Thole, and Paulino and Pridie and Parnell, and Beato and Byrdak, and Hairston and Harris, and Duda and Carrasco and Gee, and they don’t hit home runs, and they don’t win at home (18-20). And yet they won’t go away, they won’t concede anything, they won’t stop dreaming bigger than anyone outside their clubhouse thinks they have any right to.
New York doesn’t give .500 teams medals for trying or confetti-splashed rides down the Canyon of Heroes.
This isn’t even The Best Team David Einhorn’s Money Can Buy. And still, it hasn’t gotten late early for the Mets, who are one-half game behind Davey Johnson’s Nationals and five games behind the Braves in a wild-card race they weren’t supposed to be running.
It doesn’t mean Sandy Alderson should not trade Carlos Beltran or Francisco Rodriguez, because he should, no matter what happens between now and the All-Star break. They are not part of the future around Flushing. Nothing has fazed the Collins Mets — Wilpon versus Irving Picard, Wilpon versus Wright and Reyes, no Johan Santana, no Wright, no Davis; saying goodbye to Beltran and K-Rod won’t either.
And so at the beginning of a week in which they play three games in Detroit and three at Citi Field against the Yankees, don’t count them out. Don’t count out the No-Name Mets.
And here is why:
THE MANAGER: You start with Collins. Ask yourself this question, Mets fans: When was the last time your team overachieved like this? In 2000 under Bobby Valentine perhaps? Collins doesn’t care if your name is Strawberry or Huckleberry. You’ll get your chance if you at least play the game the right way. If you respect the game and take nothing for granted. If you care as much as he cares. If you want to beat the other guys as much as he wants to beat the other guys. The Mets were crying out for a leader. Alderson found the right one.
THE STAR: Jose Reyes has kept some fannies in the seats and opposing teams on the edge of theirs. He may never have another season like this, chasing Carl Crawford money the way he is. The Mets cannot risk him having another season like this in another uniform. If “show him the money” cannot apply for the Mets, then show him as much money as you possibly can.
THE GAMERS: The Phillies have ruled the division because of their preponderance of players long on mental toughness and killer instinct. Gritty, resourceful rookie Justin Turner is a prime example of the type of player the Mets have lacked. The resilient Murphy, who has played left field, second base, third base and now first base for as long as Davis is gone, and would have gladly edited Wilpon’s quotes to the New Yorker if asked, is another.
THE COMEBACK KIDS: No one could have imagined Jason Isringhausen having this kind of impact out of the bullpen. No one could have imagined Beltran still standing and turning back the clock, even in his contract year. The anger management K-Rod has undergone since that shameful incident with the father of his girlfriend hasn’t reduced him to a pussycat on the mound with the game on the line.
THE ROTATION: Dillon Gee has been a revelation. The kid just knows how to pitch. Jonathon Niese is a developing young left-hander who has a chance to be special. R.A. Dickey is no one-hit wonder. Chris Capuano is a $1.5 million bargain as the fifth starter. If Mike Pelfrey cannot take that next step, then maybe Matt Harvey will grab the ace mantle soon after he gets the call to Flushing.
So with that combination of grit, leadership and Reyes, the Mets tonight will try to get over .500 for the first time since the first week of the season.
Asked how important it is to get over the .500 hump, Murphy said: “If you want to be a playoff team, you’re probably not gonna make it playing .500 baseball.”
Murphy’s message to Mets fans: “Come out and watch us play. It’s a blue-collar ballclub. We’re gonna play hard every day. Hopefully we’re gonna be dirty at the end of the ballgame.”
The Mets have the right team in the front office. They have the right man in the dugout. These aren’t the Moneyball Mets yet. But in the meantime, they sure are giving us more bang for the bucks than we thought they would.
steve.serby@nypost.com