Mets pick wrong time for latest no-show clunker

MILWAUKEE — About 36 hours after escaping a natural disaster in the south, the Mets authored a self-made debacle, imploding minutes into a crucial game with ace Sean Manaea on the mound.The Mets still control their own destiny even after losing the series opener here, although that isn’t necessarily much of a blessing considering how they’re playing in their biggest trip of the season. The current scorecard on the excursion that will decide this season reads like this: Braves one win, Brewers one win, Hurricane Helene two rainouts, Mets two no-show games. This certainly was not the time for one of the worst performances of the season but that’s exactly what this was.

There was almost zero encouraging happening. Manaea looked nothing like himself and the Mets lineup scraped together not nearly enough against Yankees washout Frankie Montas and Co.What’s more, Mets star Francisco Lindor, playing his first full game in two weeks, doesn’t look 100 percent no matter what anyone says.

He appeared to be just toughing it out. Adding insult to injury, noted Mets tormentor Rhys Hoskins played the villain again, smashing a grand slam in the first inning in the Mets’ 8-4 defeat.Not that anyone can choose their conquerors, but Hoskins already was reviled inside the Mets clubhouse. This Hoskins hate started when he was back in Philly, but he killed the Mets in the first week this season when he won a game with his hitting heroics after upsetting Jeff McNeil (remember him?) with a hard slide into second base.

Then, six months later, he took a dagger to them to start this final weekend of the season.His two out, two-strike homer to left basically decided things 20 minutes in. The Mets still have two games here, and a chance.

But they need to pick it up. Give the upstart Brewers from arguably MLB’s smallest market (Milwaukee and Cincinnati have been claiming that title for years) ample credit.They field, they run the bases (they stole at will Friday), and ...