Mets swept by Phillies after blowing four-run lead in 6-4 loss at Citizens Bank Park
New York squandered an early four-run advantage and saw Philadelphia pitchers retire 22 straight batters in the series finale
PHILADELPHIA — The New York Mets squandered a four-run lead and were swept by the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday, falling 6-4 at Citizens Bank Park after the Phillies retired 22 straight batters to close the game.
The loss dropped the Mets to 76-71. New York, which opened June 12 at 45-24 and led the National League East by 5 1/2 games, has now watched the division slip away and enters Friday clinging to roughly a 1 1/2-game edge in the wild-card chase over the San Francisco Giants and Cincinnati Reds, who were idle. The Mets will open a new series Friday against Texas with Jacob deGrom expected to start for the Rangers.
New York produced its first lead of the three-game series early, scoring four runs in its first two innings behind RBI hits from Mark Vientos, Brandon Nimmo and Starling Marte. The rallies came against Philadelphia starter Jesús Luzardo before the left-hander settled in and retired the next 22 batters in an eight-inning performance that stifled the Mets’ offense.
The Phillies took control after the early deficit, manufacturing runs and relying on a bullpen that preserved the lead. Philadelphia scored six runs total, turning a one-sided start into a comeback victory that completed the sweep.
For the Mets, the loss compounded a series of season-long issues. Starters have often failed to go deep into games, the defense committed key mistakes at inopportune moments, and the bullpen has struggled to hold leads. The team’s offense, which managed just three runs combined in the previous four games of the series against opposing starters Hunter Greene, Aaron Nola, Ranger Suárez and Christopher Sánchez, appeared to vanish after the early outburst.
Individual frustration was visible. Vientos slammed his bat and helmet after a later strikeout, and Jeff McNeil discarded his equipment following his second strikeout of the night. Those reactions underscored New York’s growing unease as the calendar advances toward postseason implications.
Philadelphia’s pitching performance was the decisive factor. Luzardo’s string of retired hitters blunted the Mets’ momentum, and the bullpen finished the job, allowing no further runs over the final innings to secure the 6-4 result. Bryce Harper and other Phillies contributors supplied the offense needed to erase the early deficit.
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza will face questions as New York attempts to right itself in the final weeks of the regular season. The club’s swing from a commanding division lead in June to a precarious wild-card position highlights the fragility of the Mets’ run defense and the urgency of steadying both pitching and offense.
The Mets will try to regroup in Texas, where solving short starts from their rotation, tightening the defense and stabilizing the bullpen will be priorities if the team hopes to preserve its postseason berth.
A sweep loss of this kind — a game in which an early lead dissolves and the opponent retires more than two dozen consecutive batters — leaves the Mets with both tangible standings consequences and unanswered questions about whether they can regain the consistency that carried them through the first half of the season.