Jose Quintana blows late lead, Mets’ offense largely stagnant as Guardians complete sweep

The Mets blew a 3-0 sixth-inning lead and couldn’t fight back, losing to the Guardians on Wednesday as Cleveland completed a three-game sweep.

With the loss, the Mets are now a season-worst seven games under .500.

Here are the takeaways…

– Jose Quintana was very sharp and efficient early as the Mets backed him by building a 3-0 lead.

Over the first five innings he threw, Quintana allowed just two base runners — a single by David Fry in the second inning and a Fry hit-by-pitch. Through five innings, Quintana was at just 52 pitches.

But it all came crashing down for Quintana in the sixth.

After a bunt hit and two-out double put runners on second and third, Quintana fell behind Andres Gimenez 3-1 before grooving a 90 mph belt-high fastball down the middle that Gimenez smashed over the right field fence for a game-tying three-run homer.

The Guardians broke the 3-3 tie in the seventh inning.

Reed Garrett gave up a leadoff hit to Fry before notching a strikeout, and he uncorked a wild pitch that allowed the go-ahead run to advance to second base. On the wild pitch, catcher Omar Narvaez didn’t exert much effort, attempting to backhand the ball. After the wild pitch, Jonathan Rodriguez snuck a single through the right side of the infield to drive in Fry and give Cleveland a 4-3 lead.

Cleveland added two runs in the eighth. After Gimenez intentionally leaned into an Adam Ottavino fastball and got hit in the knee, he came around to score on a Jose Ramirez double. A couple of batters later, Kyle Manzardo doubled to drive in Ramirez and increase the Guardians’ lead to 6-3.

– The Mets made Guardians starter Triston McKenzie work hard early.

After Francisco Lindor worked an 11-pitch at-bat leading off the first inning before eventually flying out, Pete Alonso smacked a solo homer to right field to put New York up, 1-0.

Jeff McNeil led off the second inning by stroking a homer to right to up the Mets’ lead to 2-0, and New York continued to make McKenzie throw tons of pitches, elevating his pitch count to 49 through two frames.

– With the next pitch McKenzie threw after McNeil’s homer in the second inning, he drilled Harrison Bader in the back with a 92 mph fastball — a pitch that certainly seemed intentional. Bader gestured out to McKenzie and was steered toward first base by the home plate umpire as Carlos Mendoza trotted onto the field and cooler heads prevailed.

Bader stole second base after being hit and one-upped himself his next time up, blasting a solo homer to deep left field in the fourth inning after ripping an earlier pitch in the at-bat deep but foul.

Quintana threw a fastball inside to Fry leading off the fifth, and then hit him in the back a few pitches later — apparent retaliation for Bader getting hit earlier in the game.

– Mark Vientos continues to be an extra-base hit machine. With New York trailing, 4-3, in the eighth inning, he drilled a two-out double down the left field line. He was stranded there when McNeil struck out looking.

– Francisco Lindor stayed hot, ripping a pair of doubles.

Highlights

MVP of the Game

Andres Gimenez, whose two-out, three-run homer tied the game in the sixth.

What’s next

The Mets are off on Thursday.

They return home on Friday to open a three-game series against the Giants.

Christian Scott gets the start for New York, opposed by Kyle Harrison for San Francisco.