Mets' Edwin Diaz serves up walk-off HR to Brewers' Isaac Collins as losing streak reaches seven
Isaac Collins of the Milwaukee Brewers reacts before crossing home plate after hitting a walk-off home run in the ninth inning against the Mets at American Family Field on Sunday in Milwaukee. Credit: Getty Images/John Fisher
MILWAUKEE — A weekend of maximum pain ended for the Mets on Sunday when Isaac Collins led off the ninth inning with a home run off Edwin Diaz as the Brewers overcame an early five-run deficit to sweep the three-game series with a 7-6 victory.
The Mets, who have lost seven in a row and 11 of 12, have seen their lead for the last National League wild-card spot drop to 1 1⁄2 games over the Reds. Once the owners of a 5 1⁄2-game lead in the NL East, the Mets now trail first-place Philadelphia by 5 1/2.
But October dreams are the last thing on the Mets’ minds right now. They are reeling, and each day seems to bring a new low.
After it was over, Bernie Brewer was dancing. Mr. Met, wherever he was, probably was shaking his giant head in disbelief.
On Sunday, the Mets led 5-0 going into the bottom of the fourth. They scored in each of the first five innings and had six runs and 10 hits in the first 4 1⁄3 innings.
Then they finished the game with six runs and 10 hits.
They could not overcome another painfully short outing by one of their starters (Sean Manaea) and another blown save by one of their top relievers (Ryan Helsley).
The Mets were clinging to a 6-5 lead in the eighth when Helsley allowed a tying two-out RBI single by No. 9 hitter Joey Ortiz. The ball ticked off the glove of a diving Pete Alonso.
Diaz, who entered the game to get the last out of the eighth in his first appearance since Monday, then threw a 92-mph slider to Collins on 2-and-2 that was supposed to be down and in. It wasn’t. It got so much of the center of the zone that a ball on a tee might have been harder to hit.
“I just wanted to throw my slider in the zone, try to make him chase,” said Diaz, who said he shook off catcher Francisco Alvarez’s call for a fifth straight fastball. “Just missed it. Next time we follow [Alvarez].”
MLB-best Milwaukee (73-44) has won nine in a row and has gone 48-16 since dropping to 25-28 on May 24. The Brewers got some measure of revenge — regular-season version — for the Mets ending their season here last October in the NL Wild Card Series.
Oh, those were the days for the Mets.
These are not.
“It’s tough, it’s tough,” Diaz said. “We know we’ve got a really good team here with a really good group. We’ve just got to stay together, stick together, keep playing baseball.”
They sure did to start the game. The Mets struck early and often against Brewers starter Quinn Priester, scoring two in the first on RBI singles by Juan Soto and Jeff McNeil.
Brett Baty led off the second with his 12th home run. In the third, Alonso doubled with one out and scored on Ronny Mauricio’s two-out single.
Cedric Mullins led off the fourth with his first home run as a Met to make it 5-0.
Manaea was cruising until William Contreras opened the fourth with a home run. The Brewers loaded the bases with two outs and Ortiz hit a two-run single to make it 5-3.
Manaea escaped further damage but ended the inning at 84 pitches — two fewer than his season high going in.
“Got some long ABs there,” Manaea said. “I think guys just started seeing some things and just fouling some stuff off. They made me work and they capitalized on some mistakes.”
Alonso, who tied Darryl Strawberry’s franchise record with his 252nd home run on Saturday, added a bloop RBI double down the rightfield line in the fifth to give the Mets a 6-3 lead. That was it for Priester, who allowed all six runs and 10 hits in 4 1⁄3 innings.
His replacement, DL Hall, threw 3 2⁄3 hitless innings as the Brewers rallied.
Manaea was gone after Collins led off the bottom of the fifth with a single. For the second straight outing, he wilted after a strong start. In his previous appearance, Manaea threw four shutout innings before giving up five runs in the fifth to Cleveland.
Reed Garrett replaced Manaea and immediately gave up a two-run homer by Contreras. The lead was down to 6-5.
Garrett finished the remainder of the inning without incident and Brooks Raley threw a perfect sixth. Tyler Rogers, pitching for the third straight day, got out of a first-and-third jam in the seventh by getting Andrew Vaughn to hit into an inning-ending double play.
But then the eighth inning happened. And then the ninth.
“It’s hard to describe,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “Tough. Frustrating. But we’ve got to turn the page. We’ve got to keep going. We’ve got to find a way to start getting the victory here. That wasn’t a good showing there. They pretty much outplayed us.”
Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.
