MILWAUKEE – Rhys Hoskins hit a grand slam off Sean Manaea in the first inning and the New York Mets’ playoff hopes suffered a setback with an 8-4 loss to the NL Central champion Milwaukee Brewers on Friday night.

The Mets, Arizona Diamondbacks and Atlanta Braves are in the hunt for the National League’s final two wild cards. The Mets and Braves have an identical record of 87-71 after Atlanta defeated the Kansas City Royals 3-0 on Friday. The Diamondbacks fell to 88-72 after losing 5-3 to the San Diego Padres later Friday night.

“They kept fighting,” said Mets manager Carlos Mendoza, who was ejected by plate umpire Ramon De Jesus after arguing a called third strike against Francisco Alvarez in the fourth inning. “We were early and didn’t give up. Turn the page and we need to prepare for tomorrow.”

New York’s loss spoiled the return of star shortstop Francisco Lindor, who went 2 for 4 with a walk and committed an error in his first appearance since Sept. 15. Lindor had pitched just one inning in the Mets’ last 10 games due to a back injury.

While the Mets are still competing for a postseason spot, the Brewers are already a No. 3 seed in the NL playoffs and will open a Wild Card Series on Tuesday in Milwaukee.

“We know what’s at stake for these guys this weekend,” said Hoskins, a Mets nemesis dating back to his days with rival Philadelphia. “Obviously we’re trying to do what we can to be as prepared as possible for Tuesday through good baseball. That’s why it’s extremely important for us to get off on the right foot in the first game of a series.”

Hoskins’ drive in the first inning was his third grand slam and Milwaukee’s 10th of the season, both setting franchise records.

The only other Brewers to hit three grand slams in a season were John Jaha in 1995, Devon White in 2001 and John Vander Wal in 2003. The only other year the Brewers hit ten grand slams in a season , was 1995.

Brice Turang went 3-4 with three runs and three of Milwaukee’s six steals, raising his season total to 50. Gary Sánchez hit a home run late.

The only other players in franchise history to have at least 50 steals in a season were Tommy Harper (73 in 1969), Scott Podsednik (70 in 2005), Jonathan Villar (62 in 2016) and Pat Listach ( 54 in 1992). Harper’s 73 steals came in the franchise’s first season while playing for the Seattle Pilots.

“I’m not really looking for numbers, just ways to put myself in a better situation and score a run,” Turang said.

Milwaukee improved to 11-1 in its last 12 games against the Mets, including a 4-0 record this year.

Hoskins’ slam gave the Brewers an early 4-0 lead over Manaea, who had allowed more than three runs in just one of his last 12 starts. Manaea (12-6) gave up six runs – five earned – while lasting just 3 2/3 innings. New York had won its last eight games.

“We’re fighting for our lives here, and that doesn’t feel good,” Manaea said. “But this team is resilient.”

The Mets trailed 5-0 before Mark Vientos hit a two-run home run off starter Frankie Montas in the third.

New York then had runners on first and second and two outs in the fourth when Alvarez completed a 10-pitch hit before getting a strikeout on a 3-2 pitch that seemed a little low.

The Mets scored two runs off Hoby Milner in the eighth to cut Milwaukee’s lead to 7-4, but a brilliant catch by rookie Jackson Chourio deep in left-center helped limit the damage. Sánchez added more air with a 425-foot shot that beat Alex Young in the bottom half.

Joe Ross (3-6) pitched three innings of shutout relief and earned the win. Trevor Megill made the final in the eighth, earning a scoreless ninth that earned him his 21st save in 24 opportunities.

TRAINER ROOM

Brewers RF Sal Frelick left the game after crashing into the sidewall while trying to catch a foul ball on a bounce in the third inning. Milwaukee manager Pat Murphy said Frelick will undergo an MRI on Saturday.

Alvarez left with back spasms after sliding to third in the seventh.

NEXT

Mets LHP Jose Quintana (10-9, 3.74 ERA) will start the middle game of the series on Saturday night. Milwaukee RHP Tobias Myers (8-6, 3.09) will pitch, although he won’t necessarily start.

Quintana has pitched a career-high 22 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings and has allowed one earned run over 32 innings in his last five games, winning the last four games. He hasn’t pitched since September 18th.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB