Yesterday on Twitter, I was asked to speculate what the probability was that we’d open next season with Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey, Steven Matz, and Zack Wheeler as our starting rotation. I quickly responded that the likelihood was about 80 percent.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized that this may not even be a choice for the New York Mets, who are most likely chained to this rotation for the 2018 season. I’d like to amend my response to 100 percent.

Despite the real prospect of a rotation that can get rocked again with one arm injury after another, what else can the Mets do at this point? What other choice do they have? Their one constant who has been consistently and remarkably good is the current de facto ace Jacob deGrom – and he is not going anywhere. After a brief hiccup in late May, deGrom has looked spectacular over his last three starts, tossing three absolute gems of eight innings or more. Sorry Astros…

Then you have Noah Syndergaard, who was initially given a six week timetable to begin throwing again, but still hasn’t picked up a ball and tossed a pitch eight weeks later. Maybe the slowdown in his recovery is tied to the team’s lost season, why rush him back at this point. In any event, Thor should be good to go for next opening day, and there’s zero chance of him being dealt in the offseason.

Matt Harvey presents an interesting dynamic. Almost nobody sees him sticking with the team past his arbitration years, and he becomes a free agent after the 2018 season. More than a dozen people who get paid to speculate saw Harvey getting dealt this offseason and bringing the Mets a tidy sum. However, one year removed from Thoracic Outlet Surgery, Harvey (MLB worst 6.18 FIP) was having his worst season ever until he was finally shutdown with a broken bone in his shoulder. Even if the Mets were going to deal their former ace and Golden Boy, the injury dealt those chances a significant blow.

Finally, both Steven Matz and Zack Wheeler are on a mission to prove that each of them can stay healthy for more than two months at a time. That’s been easier said than done for the oft-injured duo. That prospect alone, deflates any potential trade value as both come with significant risk.

So what’s the bottom line? The Mets have no choice but to go with their Fab Five one more time and keep their fingers (and toes) crossed that they come close to their once vaunted expectations when many called them the best rotation in baseball despite never actually pitching one turn in the rotation as a group.

The starting rotation is one aspect of this team that you won’t hear too much about this offseason. It’s all about getting each of them healthy and across the finish line, and then hitting the reset button in 2018. It reminds me of a line from the baseball classic The Natural – which I took the liberty of  improvising.  “Hey kid, there goes the Mets’ 2018 rotation… The best there ever was.”