WASHINGTON — “I still say this is going to be the greatest.”

— Woody Boyd, “Cheers”

Woody remained optimistic through a nightmarish Thanksgiving dinner with the gang at Carla’s house. Now that August has brought forth a second straight death march for these beleaguered Mets, who among them can maintain a stiff upper lip?

It’ll represent the latest of so many tests for the guys still in uniform. And yet another loyalty check for those of you brave and/or troubled enough to not turn your back on what’s left.

The Mets returned home Wednesday following a 5-3 matinee loss to the Nationals at Nationals Park, a considerable improvement from Tuesday night’s 25-4 pummeling, but a two-game sweep nonetheless. The game set the tone for what’s to come: The team stakes will come from only the other side, as the Nats (54-53) climbed back over .500 in their attempt to return to the postseason. The Mets will focus on evaluating and assessing individuals.

The Mets’ most compelling individuals? That’s easy. Their Prodigal Four starting pitchers whom ownership and management chose to keep until a new general manager makes the final call on them for 2019. One of them, Steven Matz, started Tuesday’s dumpster fire, lasted just two-thirds of an inning and will undergo testing after complaining of tightness in his left forearm. Par for the Mets’ course.

Another, Noah Syndergaard, made his return Wednesday from his bout with hand, foot and mouth disease, and hung in there after a rough start, his seven innings, three runs and four strikeouts against one walk mitigating his getting slapped with a loss. If he can actually stay upright and start every fifth game, he will present a reason to keep watching here.

The same goes for Jacob deGrom, who might as well try to set the new record for fewest victories by a starter who receives the Cy Young Award. The Mariners’ Felix Hernandez holds the undesired mark of 13 wins when he captured the American League honor in 2010. With just five wins so far and probably 10 or 11 starts left, and with a terrible team behind him, deGrom has a strong chance to make this happen if he can keep shrugging off the ineptitude around him.

Then there’s Zack Wheeler, who pitched well enough these last couple of months to convince the Mets to keep him rather than sell high. Can he reward the Mets by continuing his push toward next season, his last before free agency?

Those three figure to be about it, unless you just can’t wait to follow the injury rehabilitations of Todd Frazier (he’s close) and Jay Bruce (he isn’t close). Remember Tommy Milone? The journeyman left-hander pitched in 11 games for last year’s Mets and compiled a ghastly 8.56 ERA. On Wednesday, he gave up only a homer to Jose Reyes over seven innings, striking out nine and walking none, to pick up his first win since April 14, 2017 (with the Brewers).

“We probably should have been able to challenge him a little bit better,” Mickey Callaway acknowledged.

It’ll be on the rookie skipper Callaway, who has two years left on his contract but already has seen the departure of the man who hired him, Sandy Alderson, to ensure this team doesn’t fully pack it in. He has seen Michael Conforto rediscover himself in the second half, he dropped the slumping Brandon Nimmo to the sixth spot in Wednesday’s lineup, and he praised rookie Jeff McNeil for hanging with Nats reliever Ryan Madson in a nine-pitch strikeout.

“You want these young players to continue to make adjustments,” Callaway said. “To battle like McNeil. Baseball played the right way by young players that are getting a chance up at the major league level.”

Will that be enough to keep you engaged? Knowing the Mets haven’t chosen a bona fide path for their future, can you settle for these scraps in the present?

Are you a Woody Boyd for these Mets? If you aren’t, rest assured you’ll have plenty of company.