The New York Red Bulls needed just six games to match their win total (five) from last season. They’re on pace to finish 25-5-0 (75 points).

That’s not going to happen, of course. But what’s the upper limit for this team? Are they that good? Just on a hot streak? Just lucky?

It’s not that the Red Bulls were drastically overhauled. Ten of the 18 players who have seen playing time this year played last year, and a few more have been out of action for one reason or another. The newcomers are solid but not spectacular.

“We had 7 of the 11 players from last season in the first lineup,” new coach Hans Backe said in a small, candid postgame press conference Saturday in RFK Stadium’s tunnels after the Red Bulls beat D.C. United 2-0. “So something good has happened during the preseason. A key factor was in the preseason we went to Spain and started winning friendlies.”

Was fellow New York sportsman Yogi Berra right? Is 90 percent of it half mental?

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