MILWAUKEE — In one of the most important games of the year, everything that could go wrong for the Mets went wrong.
There were booted balls and errant throws. The Milwaukee Brewers bullied Francisco Alvarez on the basepaths before the catcher left the game with back spasms. Left-hander Sean Manaea, a catalyst in the push for a postseason berth, gave up a first-inning grand slam to frequent Mets tormenter Rhys Hoskins in the first inning, and Francisco Lindor, playing for the first time in 12 days, didn’t look like himself.
The Mets lost 8-4 Friday night at American Family Field, and the Atlanta Braves (87-71) cruised to an easy win over the Kansas City Royals, dropping the Mets (87-71) to the third Wild Card spot in the standings.
Mark Vientos hit his 27th home run off right-hander Frankie Montas in the third, a two-run shot that cut the Milwaukee lead to three runs. It was the lone bright spot in the game.
It was the second straight loss for the Amazins’ and while two isn’t necessarily a reason to sound the alarm, it was two sloppy losses in two key games.
The team still showed fight. Down 5-2 in the top of the fourth, Alvarez battled Montas for 10 pitches with two on and two out. The catcher laid off a pitch just below the zone with the count full and dropped his bat thinking Montas threw him ball 4, but home plate umpire Ramon De Jesus called it strike 3. Manager Carlos Mendoza was promptly tossed for arguing balls and strikes.
The Brewers (91-68) rallied for another run in the bottom of the inning. With two outs, Vientos missed a dribbler from Brice Turang, extending the inning. Manaea gave up a double to Garrett Mitchell and Turang held up at third. Second baseman Jose Iglesias made a fantastic diving stop on a hard grounder from standout rookie Jackson Chourio just beyond the dirt, flipping the ball to Pete Alonso from his knees.
Alonso dove to make the pick a split second after Chourio tagged the base and Turang came home. The Mets challenged the call but it was confirmed on review. Jose Butto relieved Manaea (12-6), who made his shortest start in more than a month going only 3 2/3 innings. He was charged with six runs (five earned) on seven hits, walking two and striking out one.
Turang went 3-for-4 with a double, an RBI, a walk, three runs scored and three stolen bases. He scored again in the sixth to put Milwaukee up by five runs, swiping his third bag, then advancing on a passed ball and scoring on a wild pitch.
Alvarez was injured in the top of the seventh, sliding into third base. He grabbed his back and walked off the field with the help of a trainer and was replaced by Luis Torrens.
The Mets loaded the bases on left-hander Hoby Milner in the top of the eighth with one out. Brandon Nimmo scored on a sacrifice fly and Pete Alonso scored when Turang dropped a fly ball hit by J.D. Martinez. But the Brewers replaced Milner with right-hander Trevor Megill, the brother of Mets’ right-hander Tylor Megill, who induced a rally-killing pop-up to Torrens.
Gary Sanchez, the former Yankees catcher who had a brief stint with the Mets last season, put the game away with a massive home run off Alex Young in the bottom of the inning.
Lindor went 2-for-4 with a walk in his first game since Sept. 15. He was also charged with an error and looked to be in pain at times.