Mets’ late-inning heartbreak just won’t end

SAN FRANCISCO — Extra, extra, it’s nine innings or bust for the Mets.

For the third time in four games, the Mets and Giants on Sunday played into extra innings. And like in the previous two instances, the Mets cracked, wasting a strong starting pitching performance.

Mike Yastrzemski’s walk-off homer against Robert Gsellman in the 12th inning sunk the Mets in a 3-2 loss at Oracle Park that pushed them nine games below .500.

Gsellman, in his second inning of work, recorded one out before Yastrzemski hit a shot to left field that kept carrying until it cleared the fence.

The Mets finished 5-4 on the road trip, which also included stops in Miami and Minnesota.

These two teams played for nearly five hours on Thursday and it was settled when Mets rookie Chris Mazza allowed two runs in the bottom of the 16th after Pete Alonso had homered in the top of the inning.

On Friday, the Giants scored the only run of the game against Jacob Rhame in the 10th inning when Dominic Smith dropped Alex Dickerson’s pop-up to left field.

The Giants threatened in the 11th Sunday, when Jeurys Familia walked two batters to begin the inning. Gsellman entered and got Dickerson to hit into a double play before retiring Pablo Sandoval.

Jeff McNeil endured a rare silent day at the plate for the Mets, finishing 0-for-5. It was only the fourth time this season McNeil finished hitless in five at-bats. Todd Frazier struck out four times before reaching on an infield single in the 12th inning.

Seth Lugo was booed as he left the mound after getting the final out in the eighth. The right-hander had thrown a pitch over Buster Posey’s head before drilling the Giants catcher with his next offering. Lugo also pitched a scoreless ninth before Edwin Diaz worked a perfect 10th.

Justin Wilson pitched a scoreless seventh with help from McNeil, who slammed into the padding in the right-field corner after catching Donovan Solano’s ball on the run to end the inning.

Steven Matz received a no-decision after allowing two earned runs on six hits with one walk over six innings. It was Matz’s best start (in terms of runs that scored) since May 28, when he allowed two runs over six innings in a win at Dodger Stadium.

Matz surrendered an RBI double to Zach Green in the fourth that tied it 2-2. Posey had opened the inning with a double before Green, who had collected his first MLB hit in his previous at-bat, delivered.

Brandon Crawford had brought the Giants within 2-1 in the second with an RBI single that scored Posey. It was Green’s single in the inning that moved Posey into scoring position.

Michael Conforto and Amed Rosario each delivered a solo homer in the second against lefty Conner Menez in his major league debut, giving the Mets a 2-0 lead. Conforto’s blast was a “splash hit” that reached McCovey Cove beyond the high right-field wall. Two batters later, Rosario cleared the left-field fence for his 11th homer of the season.

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