There is a kind of musical chairs going on in the race for the National League wildcard spots, and the Mets cannot afford to miss out on a spot.

They are promising hosts for the Nationals, who are battling the Braves for the final NL playoff spot with 13 games left in the schedule.

The Mets won the season series against Washington 8-2 both head-to-head and against the spread, and they also swept the Nats 20-7 in their first meeting at Citi Field.

Jake Irvin fits into a Nationals rotation that has a .311 batted average, the third-highest in baseball.

The second-year right-hander earned a confidence win in his last start by limiting a combustible Braves lineup to just two hits in six innings.

But Irvin has only managed two consecutive wins this season, while the Mets handed him a 5.79 ERA in three career starts.

Irvin has declined significantly since his last start against the Mets on July 9.

He tries to put a sad August behind him.

A major problem is that he has trouble getting out of tight situations. Against opponents in scoring position, he has a slug percentage of .466.

Sean Manaea was a relatively consistent presence in his first season with the Amazin’s.

He has been extremely effective down the stretch, posting a 4-1 record and a 3.00 ERA since the beginning of August.

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It’s no secret how much more offensive potential the Mets have compared to Washington:

They are 16 runs better in Weighted Runs Created Plus (wRC+), a metric that quantifies run creation while taking external factors into account.

I’ll take the heavier bats, more consistent pitching, and more favorable matchup trends for added value on the run line.

THE GAME: Mets -1.5 (FanDuel, +114)

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Sean Treppedi rates NFL, NHL, MLB and college football for the New York Post. He focuses primarily on picks that reflect market value while tracking trends to minimize risk.