2) September 11
By September 11, the NL East division title was out of reach, but the Mets were still firmly in the Wild Card race. The Mets had a chance to gain an extra half-game over the Reds if they took the match-up over the Philadelphia Phillies this day. From the outset of the game, it looked as if this would be a win for the Mets.
The Mets immediately jumped out in front with a four-run lead in the top of the first inning. Both Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto reached base via singles, and stole second and third base, while Mark Vientos was up to bat before he drove in Lindor from third base with a base hit. It didn't take long for Soto to follow Lindor home either, as Nimmo drove him in with a single. Marte capped off the outstanding first inning with a double, driving home both Vientos and Nimmo.
But after the first inning, the Mets were no-hit by the Phillies' starter, Jesus Luzardo. He held the Mets' bats silent while striking out a total of ten over eight innings of work. He also didn't allow a single free pass. Unfortunately, the Mets' pitching wasn't as air-tight, and it wouldn't take long for them to blow the lead.
David Peterson walked Nick Castellanos in the bottom of the 4th with one out before surrendering a home run to Otto Kemp. The Phils scored a third run off of Peterson in the next inning, after giving up a leadoff single. While Peterson got two tough outs on Harrison Bader and Kyle Schwarber, he wasn't as lucky with Bryce Harper, allowing a run-scoring double.
Reed Garrett then replaced Peterson, and it only went downhill faster from here. He gave up two leadoff doubles to Castellanos and Kemp, which tied the game. Bader then came up with two outs and delivered a go-ahead single. Harper would tack on the Phillies' sixth run of the game, but that was all they needed to support Luzardo after imploding in the first inning. This also contributed to the Mets' September losing streak, as it was their sixth consecutive loss.