Ah, it’s prediction time.

With roughly five weeks left in the regular season, Phillies’ fans will begin to ponder if their Fightins’ can capture the NL East.

Around New York, the Mets mercurial rise recently hit a breaking point until the Marlins came to town this weekend to start the climb again. And how about the Yankees? The Bronx Bombers have had their share of inconsistencies, but they will be in the battle for the AL East.

In this week’s version of my Behind the Plate column — investigating trends involving the Phillies, Mets, and Yankees as well as the status of the game — I’ll look at the final stretch of the season-long marathon for all three teams, predicting they can advance into the postseason. I’ll also look at some present and past happenings of the game.

Phil-It-Up ... In this column and many other media outlets, there has been much banter about whether or not the Phillies will win the NL East.

Since July 5 when they were 44-19 and had their biggest lead at 10 games, the Phils are 29-32. Over the past month, they have hovered around the .500 mark.

Players have had their share of slumps, both in the batter’s box and on the mound. There have been plenty of head scratches from some of manager Rob Thomson’s strategic, pinch-hitting, and pitcher moves.

Fortunately for the Phils, they can likely survive playing around .500 ball for the majority of the season.

However, they will still need a winning streak to clinch the division. That should occur in September when they have the Blue Jays, Cubs, Marlins, Rays, Brewers and Nationals on the docket. They also have seven games left with the Mets, which could be some intriguing contest.

More Than Brave At Heart ... This year, the Phillies will “back into the postseason” using a different from anticipated version. The club’s mediocrity has been overshadowed by the Braves’ streaming injuries and periodically ineptness.

After Sunday, the Braves trailed the Phlllies by 7.5 games. That’s a big enough margin to pass in five weeks.

The Braves have never truly recovered from the loss of outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. and pitcher Spencer Strider. Second baseman Ozzie Albies is expected back soon from a fractured left wrist, and third baseman Austin Riley left Sunday’s game after being hit on the hand.

Atlanta doesn’t seem to have the karma this year, and their ever-reliable farm system hasn’t produced the pitching stud it usually does around the All-Star break.

Beginning in Atlanta on Tuesday, the Braves will have their shot, as they will host three games before traveling to Philly for a four-game set that starts in the final days of the month and ends Sept.1.

They also have the Nationals, Twins, Reds, Dodgers, Mets, Marlins and Royals left on their schedule. Atlanta either will have to win all seven games or at least five of them to make a legitimate run.

Last season, the Braves entered Sept. 1 untouchable with a 89-45 record with a 15-game lead. They did slump in September with a 15-17 record.

Currently, designated hitter Marcell Ozuna (.311 average) is the lone starter hitting over .260. Chris Sale (14.2, 2.62) is having a banner year on the mound, but the rest of the starters have struggled around the .500 mark.

Prediction ... The Phillies win the NL East, and they easily can sneak into the World Series unless the Dodgers play better ball.

Amazin’ or Grazin’? ... Are the Mets a Wild Card contender?

The Mets matched their season-high in games over .500 with seven on Aug. 8 (61-54) before Seattle swept them and Oakland took two of three.

It may have been their high water mark of the season.

This is a team whose starting pitching has overachieved for the most part with Sean Manaea, David Peterson and Luis Severino. Edwin Diaz has appeared to regain his status in the bullpen.

Francisco Lindor has been mentioned in the MVP voting, and Mark Vientos has had a great second half.

But it will take Pete Alonso to have a monster last chapter to secure a new contract, and Brandon Nimmo needs to regain his touch. J.D. Martinezhas slowed after his great start.

The Mets have a rugged ride ahead with the Orioles, Padres, Diamondbacks, Red Sox, Reds, Blue Jays, Phillies, Nationals, Braves and Brewers. They do have a set with the White Sox.

The Braves, Padres and Diamondback have the top three Wild Card spots with the Mets two games behind.

Prediction ... Sorry, Mets’ fans, I don’t see a Wild Card this year.

Yankee Doodles ... The Yankees have the Orioles at their door for the division, but they likely will get a Wild Card spot if they fall short.

The Yanks also should have the benefit of their schedule with the Guardians, Rockies, Nationals, Cardinals, Rangers, Cubs, Mariners, A’s, Orioles and Pirates down the road.

Still, they need their pitching to step up, especially with Nestor Cortes finding his niche and Luis Gil regaining his notch.

Offensively, it will be up to Aaron Judge to continue his record-breaking campaign, and Juan Soto producing like he wants a new Yankee deal. Jazz Chisholm flashed his glove and bat before he was briefly sidelined, but he’ll be back. Gleyber Torres is also in his contract year, and needs to pick up the pace.

The Yanks ended Sunday with a 73-51 record, and they finished 82-80 last year. They were 16-11 in September last season.

Prediction ... I see the Yankees winning the division barely over the Orioles. If they are to advance, their pitching needs to improve.

Not A Prize Catch ... Remember all the talk a few years ago about South Jersey native and Angles star Mike Trout coming to the Phillies?

Well, Trout’s stock as the best all-around player in the game has sunk. Due to a rash of injuries, Trout has played only 319 games since 2020.

In terms of the Yankees, high-priced slugger Giancarlo Stanton also has been tagged as being “always hurt.” Comparatively, Stanton has played 464 games over the same period.

Those Swingin’ A’s ... It’s sad to see the A’s leave Oakland after they have been such a mainstay for the game there since the 60s.

Over the last month, the A’s have shown that they may give their few remaining fans a sweet sendoff.

Oakland has been one of the hottest teams. Beginning Sunday, Oakland had won 14 of its last 22 games since July 21. They were 18-19 in one-run games and had a 30-30 record at home.

Unless you’re a stathead, this is a relatively unknown bunch aside from reliever Mason Miller. They were hitting .232 as a team and had a 4.26 ERA.

Thanks to the memories of Charlie Finley and the World Series winning 70s bunch of Bert Campaneris, Reggie Jackson, Sal Bando and Joe Rudi to mention a few.

Readers Write ... Best Phillies’ team

Hi Jeff!

After analyzing the stats for 1980, 1993, 2008, 2009, along with 1976 and 1977, I still have to go with the 1977 team as the best ever.

I put everything together — team victories, starting pitching, relief pitching, defense, hitting and bench depth.

The outcome of the game on “Black Friday” might have been different if we could have challenged the umpire’s decisions like today. Why would anybody play in the rain the next day? Nowadays, it would have been postponed.

The 1976 team came in at No. 2 on my list. They had the misfortune of going up against the Big Red machine. The other teams, however, did put up some good numbers in certain categories.

Richard Ochs

Walnutport, PA

Final Thought ... The Dodgers are giving away a Kobe Bryant Dodgers’ jersey Aug. 25. That’s certainly different.

Email your thoughts to tnsports@tnonline.com