NEW YORK — A rotten first half ended rottenly.A brilliant start from rookie Zach Thornton and an encouraging day at the plate from Francisco Lindor were swallowed up by a brutal error by the shortstop, a blown save, and a 3-2, 10-inning loss to the Boston Red Sox that left the New York Mets with the sourest of tastes entering the All-Star break.“It hasn’t been fun,” said Devin Williams, who allowed the two ninth-inning runs that tied the game. “Not a lot of celebrating in this clubhouse right now.”The 2026 Mets simply can’t have nice things.New York led 2-0 in the ninth when Williams appeared to get the final ground ball he’d need with a shot off the bat of Romy Gonzalez straight to Lindor for a tailor-made double play. But Lindor bobbled the ball when trying to flip it to second — he’s had an inordinate amount of trouble getting the ball out of his glove lately — and couldn’t record even the first out.“The ball ate me up,” Lindor said. “Unacceptable.”Williams made matters worse by walking the next two hitters to force in a run, and the game-tying tally scored when Jarren Duran’s flop shot to right short-hopped Carson Benge’s sliding attempt.Boston pushed across a run in the top of the 10th on a sacrifice bunt and a sacrifice fly. The Mets went down in order in the bottom of the inning.Long one of the game’s most elite defenders at its premier defensive position, Lindor has not been at his best in a while. He took a step back with the glove last season and has looked worse than that in a small sample this year.“I’m not playing to the standards I have; I’m not playing to the organization’s standards,” Lindor said. “I’ve got to get better.”Interim manager Andy Green mentioned that since Lindor’s returned from the calf strain that sidelined him for two months, he’s taken fewer pregame practice reps than usual, trying to save his legs for games.“He’s been great his entire career and I have a ton of confidence going into the second half he’ll be great,” Green said.The frustration of the ninth inning was amplified by how good the Mets could feel about the first eight. Making the third start of his big-league career, Thornton was masterful, twirling seven innings of two-hit ball against the hottest team in baseball. No Red Sox baserunner touched third against Thornton, who’s allowed one run on seven hits over 13 innings in his past two starts — against the Phillies and Red Sox. This should be the start of a prolonged look at the 24-year-old in the second-half rotation.And Lindor himself had put together one of his best performances of the season at the plate. He’d roped a first-inning RBI double off Boston lefty Payton Tolle to open the scoring, and his solo home run — from the other side of the plate against righty Brayan Bello — gave the Mets some cushion.It was not enough. Nothing in this first half has been enough for the Mets. Their 40-57 record ranks 27th in baseball. It’s the Mets’ worst record at the All-Star break since 1995.“There’s too much talent in the room to be in this spot right now,” said Green, who’s been the manager for just more than two weeks. “We have to take ownership of it. Every single person on that team has a level of responsibility to flip that script in the second half.”Jul 12, 2026Connections: Sports EditionSpot the pattern. Connect the termsFind the hidden link between sports terms