The Mets scored in the first, but a costly error and home run gave the Cincinnati Reds the 3-2 win on Saturday night.

Here are the takeaways...

- Tylor Megill gutted his way through 5.2 innings, despite constant traffic on the basepaths in this one. The right-hander got through the first inning without issue, but in the second inning things got a little hairy. A leadoff single by TJ Friedl and a two-out single by Christian Encarnacion-Strand put runners on the corners with Elly De La Cruz coming up.

- However, it turns out the Mets would gift the Reds a run when Francisco Alvarez threw the ball to third base as Encarnacion-Strand stole second. Ronny Mauricio, playing his second game at third base, was late covering the bag which resulted in the ball rolling down the left-field line and allowing a run to score.

- The error tied the game at one after New York drove in a run in the bottom of the first on Mauricio’s single. After Reds starter Andrew Abbott retired the first two batters of the inning, he walked Pete Alonso and gave up a single to Francisco Lindor which brought up Mauricio.

- With a chance to retake the lead, the Mets loaded the bases in the third inning thanks to a Lindor walk, Mauricio single and Jeff McNeil walk, all with two outs. But Mark Vientos struck out swinging to end the bases loaded threat.

- Cincinnati made sure to capitalize on New York’s inability to score during the next half inning. After walking Joey Votto, Megill allowed a two-run shot to Encarnacion-Strand that gave the Reds a 3-1 lead.

The Mets answered right back, though, on Alvarez’s RBI double that brought in Tim Locastro and cut the deficit in half.

- With a bases loaded opportunity themselves in the top of the fifth inning after three straight one-out singles, Megill needed a double play and got it off the bat of Tyler Stephenson to neutralize the danger.

Megill was pulled after 5.2 innings with his last batter being De La Cruz, who singled off of him for the second time in the game. After the first inning, the 28-year-old had at least one baserunner reach base in every inning, allowing nine hits in total and two walks. However, he did well by giving up just three runs (two earned) and giving the Mets a chance to win. His season ERA now sits at 4.94, dipping below 5.00 for the first time since June 16.

- With Megill and Abbott (3.2 innings) both out of the game, it became a battle of the bullpens and both team’s relievers were nails. The trio of Brooks Raley, Trevor Gott and Adam Ottavino didn’t allow a hit in 3.1 innings and struck out six while walking two.

Meanwhile, the Reds used four relievers to finish the job. Only Derek Law in the ninth inning had some trouble, giving up two hits to give the Mets a chance, but Alonso grounded out to end the game and hand New York its second loss in a row.

Highlights

What's next

The Mets and Reds finish off their three-game set on Sunday afternoon at 1:40 p.m.

LHP Jose Quintana (2-5, 3.05 ERA) will face fellow lefty Brandon Williamson (4-4, 4.47 ERA).