Good wasn’t good enough for the weekend.
After winning the first two games of this series against the depleted Marlins, the Mets — with a challenging schedule ahead — needed to finish business Sunday with a sweep.
Instead they received a weak offensive performance and shoddy bullpen work in a 3-2 loss at Citi Field that left the Mets at 3-3 on the homestand.
Their next 10 games feature the Orioles, Padres and Diamondbacks, all of whom are in playoff contention, so this was nothing less than an opportunity lost for the Mets, who began the day one game behind Atlanta for the NL’s third wild card.
In a game in which Brandon Nimmo departed in the eighth with right shoulder soreness, the Mets went 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position and watched Huascar Brazoban and Reed Garrett flush a late lead.
The Mets’ last shot came in the ninth, but after Jose Iglesias and Tyrone Taylor reached on successive singles to begin the inning, Jeff McNeil, Francisco Lindor and Mark Vientos were retired in succession.
Paul Blackburn gave the Mets a third strong start in four since joining the Mets at the trade deadline.
The right-hander lasted six innings and allowed one earned run on four hits and one walk with four strikeouts over 92 pitches.
Blackburn has allowed one earned run in three of his four starts for the club.
Vientos got thrown out at the plate to end the first after tagging up from second base on Pete Alonso’s long drive to center field.
On the play, Derek Hill — who hit the fence and fell — flipped the ball to right fielder Jesus Sanchez, who fired to the cutoff.
Vientos had easily reached third and received the green light from coach Mike Sarbaugh, but was tagged out at the plate following a strong throw for a unique 8-9-4-2 double play.
Taylor tried for a diving catcher in center on Otto Lopez’s line drive to center in the third and missed.
Lopez raced to third with a leadoff triple and scored the game’s first run on Nick Fortes’ sacrifice fly.
Lindor’s RBI single tied it 1-1 in the fifth.
Jesse Winker singled leading off the inning and Iglesias walked. Lindor delivered with two outs, but Vientos struck out to leave two runners on base.
Nimmo crushed Valente Bellozo’s second pitch of the sixth inning for a homer to give the Mets a 2-1 lead.
Nimmo jumped on a changeup and sent it into the second deck in right field.
The blast was Nimmo’s second of the series, after returning from a stomach bug that sidelined him on Thursday.
Starling Marte singled later in the inning — the outfielder was activated from the injured list before the game following a two-month absence – and Iglesias walked before Taylor struck out to end the threat.
Brazoban allowed the tying run in the seventh.
Following Emmanuel Rivera’s infield single that put runners on the corners, Brazoban unloaded a wild pitch that tied it 2-2.
Nimmo’s diving catch in left field robbed Nick Fortes of a potential go-ahead single, ending the threat after Garrett entered with two outs and two runners on base.
Hill’s single against Phil Maton in the eighth put the Mets in a 3-2 hole.
Garrett walked three batters in the inning, but picked off Xavier Edwards from second.
