PITTSBURGH _ In the Mets' 8-4 loss to the Pirates on Friday night, the end of their seven-game win streak, baseball showed again its amazingly, frustratingly, mind-numbingly unpredictable nature.
Last weekend, Steven Matz tossed his first career shutout against the Pirates. This time, he maintained that pace through three innings at PNC Park. And then he completely lost it in the fourth, allowing five runs before manager Mickey Callaway pulled him at 65 pitches and 3 2/3 innings.
For the Mets (53-56), the loss was their second in their past 10 games, a run that has injected them back into the fringes of the National League Wild-Card race.