Early gaffe opens door for Reds as Mets drop third in a row

NEW YORK – The Mets had a memorable pregame ceremony at Citi Field on Saturday, retiring David Wright’s uniform No. 5 and inducting him into the Mets Hall of Fame because of a fabulous 14-year career in orange and blue.

“It was a special day, obviously,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “I was a fan right there. I had tears in my eyes. It was just incredible. Just watching David enjoy it with his family, teammates, ex-coaches and the fan base. Yeah, it was just special there.”

The game that followed the festivities wasn’t fun to watch as the Reds defeated New York, 5-2. The Mets have lost three straight games and six of their past nine.

Saturday’s game was almost the same as Friday’s matchup. The Mets had a 2-0 lead early, but they were unable to stop the bleeding after their defense betrayed right-hander Clay Holmes early in the game.

Cincinnati had runners on first and second with no outs in the third inning when Mets catcher Luis Torrens tried to pick off Noelvi Marte at first. Problem was, neither first baseman Pete Alonso nor second baseman Brett Baty was looking for a throw. The ball went by both infielders, allowing Jake Fraley to score and cut New York’s lead to one.

“It’s not a play we have on there,” Mendoza said. “We’ve seen at times where [Torrens] had a delayed pick to the bases. In that situation, it’s not the right decision, obviously.”

Two batters later, Matt McLain singled to left field, scoring Marte and tying the score at 2. By the time Holmes left the game with one out in the sixth inning, he had allowed five runs (four earned).

In the past 37 games since June 7, David Peterson is the Mets’ only starter who has recorded an out in the seventh inning. He has done it four times during that span.

Holmes acknowledged he has to start going deep in games and help the bullpen.

“I have to finish some outings there,” Holmes said. “A couple of innings, the leadoff batter got on. Same in the sixth inning. The leadoff guy got on, I really couldn’t finish the outing. If I could finish that sixth, it would have put the team in a much better position to win that game. … In this role, to finish outings is huge.”

It starts with learning how to navigate the third time through the lineup and figure out what pitches Holmes can go to late in the game.

“You get a feel for yourself and game situations – when you need to attack and go to your strengths,” Holmes said. “It’s always game situations. … It’s always the first guy and take it batter by batter.”

Pitching wasn’t the only problem on this day. The offense was stagnant, going 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position. It hasn’t helped that shortstop Francisco Lindor has been hitless in his past 17 at-bats, seeing his batting average dip to .253.

“When he is going good, he is short to the ball. He uses the whole field. Then he is able to pull [the ball] when he has to,” Mendoza said. “Right now, I feel like he is getting a little long. I don’t know if he is swinging too hard, but that’s just part of when a good hitter is going through. He knows it, obviously. That’s basically what I see.”

The Mets did try to rally in the ninth inning against Reds closer Emilio Pagán. They had runners on first and third and one out, but Juan Soto struck out, and Pete Alonso ended the game with a flyout to right fielder Fraley.

“Tremendous team. You saw it there in the ninth,” said Fraley, who went 3-for-4 in the game. “You’re up three runs, but with the lineup like that, even with a guy like Emilio on the mound, it’s tough. That’s a playoff team over there. For us to come in here and do what we’ve done so far, it’s honestly no surprise to any of us here.”

Mets outfielder Brandon Nimmo was disappointed that New York couldn’t pick up a victory for his mentor, Wright.

“I was always trying to be like him coming up,” Nimmo said. “Definitely disappointing to lose on his day. It made it no less special.

“That ceremony beforehand, I think, was amazing. Not just for him, but for the fan base to share with him. I was over there trying to hold back tears. It was just a special moment. You could see how much the fans appreciate everything he did and leaving his heart out on the field.”