ARLINGTON, Texas — The Mets’ recent success has been built not just on a surging lineup, but also a bullpen that has become respectable after a disastrous May.
But Wednesday night, in their attempt to complete a sweep of the sagging defending World Series champions, neither the runs nor the late-inning lockdown needed were found.
Drew Smith surrendered a go-ahead homer to Leody Taveras in the seventh inning and the Mets never recovered in a 5-3 loss to the Rangers at Globe Life Field.
The Mets, who missed in their attempt to complete a second straight series sweep, said goodbye to a seven-game winning streak that was their season’s best.
The Mets’ bullpen had pitched to a 1.40 ERA over the previous 11 games, but Smith — who has been largely dependable since returning from the injured list earlier this month — couldn’t get the last out in the seventh inning.
Taveras, on the seventh pitch of the at-bat, hit a 94 mph four-seamer over the right-field fence for a two-run homer that gave the Mets their margin of defeat.
Offensively, the Mets managed only five hits and went silent in the final three innings.
It followed a stretch in which the Mets (35-38) combined for 32 runs over three games against the Padres and Rangers.
The Rangers didn’t get their first hit against Sean Manaea until the sixth on Robbie Grossman’s single to left field.
It snapped a string of 14 straight batters retired by Manaea since the first inning. Manaea lasted 5 ²/₃ innings and allowed three earned runs on two hits with three walks and a hit batter.
Manaea needed 36 pitches to get through the first inning, but surrendered only one run.
Manaea walked Grossman, Adolis Garcia and Josh Smith in succession with two outs to load the bases before plunking Wyatt Langford to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead.
But Manaea rebounded to get the third out on Nathaniel Lowe’s grounder.
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Starling Marte’s RBI double against Andrew Heaney in the fourth tied it 1-1.
Brandon Nimmo delivered a check-swing double to left to start the rally and J.D. Martinez drew a full-count walk with one out.
But following Marte’s double, Heaney struck out Mark Vientos and Francisco Alvarez to strand runners on second and third.
Heaney also struck out the first two batters in the fifth, Jose Iglesias and Harrison Bader, running his strikeout streak to four before Francisco Lindor was retired on a groundout.
Pete Alonso launched a two-run homer in the sixth that gave the Mets a 3-1 lead.
Martinez walked and Alonso cleared the center field fence for his 16th homer this season.
A night earlier, Alonso stroked a go-ahead RBI double in the ninth inning of the Mets’ 7-6 victory.
Smith’s RBI double in the sixth pulled the Rangers within 3-2 and knocked out Manaea, who was within one out of working through the sixth inning for the first time in six starts.
Sean Reid-Foley entered and allowed a single to Langford that tied it 3-3.
Lowe followed with a walk before Reid-Foley struck out Jonah Heim to escape the inning.
Grossman’s single — the Rangers’ first hit of the night — started the rally.
Alvarez singled to begin the seventh, but pinch-hitters Jeff McNeil and D.J. Stewart were retired before Jose Urena struck out Lindor.
Smith walked Corey Seager with two outs in the seventh before Taveras cleared the right-field fence to put the Mets in a 5-3 hole.