Mets' Season Officially on the Brink After Latest Loss to Reds

Jun 16, 2026; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez (4) looks at a tablet as he sits in the dugout after the game against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images | Aaron Doster-Imagn Images

After taking a series from the first-place Atlanta Braves, the New York Mets have dropped two in a row to the flailing Cincinnati Reds and are falling even further out of playoff contention.

The Mets will try to avoid a sweep on Wednesday by stealing a win early in the afternoon, but their season took a major hit regardless. Any momentum the team had going into this road trip is now gone, and the Mets will need a major performance against the Philadelphia Phillies to try to get back on track.

After being outscored 17-3 over the first two games, the Mets looked fairly lifeless in both contests. The offenses left the bases loaded a staggering five times over the first 13 innings of the series, while the pitching allowed 13 runs in the first two innings of the two games. It was a futile effort, and one that can make a front office take a firm stance on the trade deadline direction of a team.

As the Mets enter play on Wednesday with a 6.5-game deficit in the National League Wild Card picture, their hopes for the playoffs are slipping quickly. A blowout win followed by a disheartening loss that they could have won multiple times can kill the morale of a team, which could be a death nail this close to the trading deadline. Considering all of these factors, it is fair to say that the 2026 Mets are officially hanging on by a thread.

Latest Mets loss to the Reds officially puts New York's playoff chances on life support

With their deficit in the wild card picture growing and their inability to jump over a team ahead of them in the standings, the Mets' season is hanging in the balance. New York has fallen back to nine games under .500, seemingly unable to get close to the .500 mark, let alone back over the hump. The Mets cannot afford any more losses, let alone to other contenders as they have the Phillies and Chicago Cubs coming up on the schedule.

Entering play on Wednesday, FanGraphs gives the Mets just a 14% chance to make the big dance in October, which is likely due in large part to how mediocre the wild card picture has been so far and a looming return of superstar shortstop Francisco Lindor, who has supercharged a playoff sprint for the Mets before. This task will be much more difficult and seems to be more improbable by the day.

With the odds stacked against them, the Mets are now facing an incredibly long track back into contention, and their season could be functionally over by this time next week. If the Mets drop their series to the Cubs and Phillies, they could push back below the Giants and to the cellar of the National League.

The Mets could have jumped ahead of the Reds with a series sweep as they met up with a now-injured and struggling team, but instead have lost two games in different, but equally embarrassing fashion. With now two and a half months behind them, the Mets are running out of time to try to right the ship.