CINCINNATI _ Pinned to a corkboard in the visitor's clubhouse at Great American Ball Park all weekend was a chart with the Mets' itinerary _ bus times and flight lengths and whatnot for their series in Denver and Cincinnati, their final week away from New York before the end of the season.
That piece of paper is always posted, or at least otherwise available to Mets players and staff, when they are on the road. But this version had an appropriately different last line: "NEXT TRIP: To be determined ... BY YOU!!"
Even with a 6-3 victory against the Reds on Sunday and a pair of series wins, it increasingly appears there will be no "NEXT TRIP" for the Mets, whose long shot playoff chances got longer during this road trip.
The Mets headed home Sunday night four games back of a National League wild card spot, pending the result of the Brewers' game, with an elimination number of four. They round out the season with four games against the Marlins and three against the Braves.
The Mets reached Reds righthander Trevor Bauer for five runs in seven innings. Bauer struck out eight, walked none and allowed five hits.
Most of the Mets' damage came in the first inning, when _ with two outs _ they matched their Saturday hit total (three) and doubled their Saturday run total (two). Pete Alonso and Robinson Cano smacked back-to-back doubles for a run, and after Wilson Ramos was hit by a pitch, Michael Conforto hit a three-run homer run about 20 rows into the rightfield seats.
Bauer settled in to retire 15 of 16 _ the only exception being Cano, who got hit by a pitch on his left big toe (X-rays negative) _ before J.D. Davis homered in the sixth.
Marcus Stroman allowed two runs in 4 2/3 innings and cruised _ retiring 13 consecutive batters _ between running into trouble at the beginning and end of his outing.
In the first, Joey Votto and Eugenio Suarez had back-to-back singles to put runners on the corners. Aristides Aquino's sacrifice fly to center began Stroman's streak of outs that took him into the fifth.
In the fifth, Kyle Farmer homered with two outs. Then Stroman suddenly lost the strike zone, walking opposing pitcherr Bauer, Phillip Ervin and Votto to load the bases. Manager Mickey Callaway called on Brad Brach to face Suarez, who popped out to second on the first pitch.
Stroman finished with three hits allowed, three walks and two strikeouts.
