The New York Mets have exceeded even their own expectations this season.

The Mets are 82-61 and own a 9.5-game lead over the Washington Nationals in the National League East. They have a magic number of 11 to clinch.

"It's really hard to imagine that we would be sitting where we are right now, even though we thought we had a good team," Terry Collins said. "This is far and above what we expected."

With their 82nd win, the Mets now have clinched their first winning season since 2008.

“It’s special because we haven’t done it in a long time here,” Collins said. “We made a commitment last fall that it’s time to win. We’re not done. We’ve got a long way to go yet. I just think it shows the commitment the organization made to make this season be something our fans are excited about. We’ve got 19 more to go, but it’s been pretty fun to watch.”