The Mets were dead team walking late Friday night. A game was lost, and so was Clay Holmes for months with a fractured fibula. That left the Mets eight games under .500 and sensing that they had just suffered one key injury too many, this one to the most consistent player on the 2026 squad.

They were despondent. Reeling. Ready to be knocked out.

That the Yankees failed to seize on this moment says something, yes, about the Mets’ resolve. But it screams about the current state of the Yankees as well. They went on a nine-game road trip with the belief they were the majors’ best team. They will return to The Bronx having lost seven of nine and the soft spots on their roster exposed, notably an underwhelming bullpen.

Aaron Boone and other Yankees insist they still believe in the length of this relief corps. What else can they say? But it was the whole group which faltered during these nine games. The pen was 0-4 on this trip with a 5.40 ERA. David Bednar, Fernando Cruz, Camilo Doval and Brent Headrick each blew a save. Bednar, Cruz, Headrick and Tim Hill each suffered a loss.