​The New York Mets lost the rubber game of their three game series to the Houston Astros, 6-3, as their reconfigured bullpen came up short after starter Zac Thornton left the game.The first inning featured some explosive scoring from both teams, with the Astros getting the first run on a solo homer by Jeremy Pena off  Thornton to make it 1-0. But the Mets struck back in a big way on back-to-back solo shots from Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto off Ethan Pecko to make it 2-1. The Astros the tied it at 2-2 in the second on an RBI single from Pena, but the pitchers settled in after that and began matching zeroes. The Mets briefly took the lead in the sixth on a double play grounder from Luis Torrens, but it was all downhill for the Mets after that. The turning point came when Thornton left the game. He wasn’t brilliant, but he was solid as usual as he gave up two runs in five innings as he surrendered six hits to go with five strikeouts without walking a single hitter.  The problems started when reliever Jonathan Pintaro entered the game; he’s been hit and miss so far, and this one was a miss. Lamonte Wade Jr. put Houston back in front with a two-run homer to make it 4-3, and the Astros rallied for two more off Jefry Yan in the seventh. That rally featured some poor Mets defense started with a walk to Isaac Paredes, followed by an infield hit by Jose Altuve. Christian Walker was hit by a pitch, and a ground ball from Dalton Varsho scored Altuve via a throwing error by Young, with Paredes scoring as well. The Mets didn’t offer much offensively after that explosive first inning, and the Houston bullpen did a nice job of bringing this game home safely. The trio of relievers that got the job done was AJ Blubaugh, Brayan Abreu and Steven Okert, with Josh Hader picking up his 21st save and his second of the series. It was a disapointing loss for the Mets, who have been showing signs of life since the trade deadline, but the constant churn of bullpen retreads is starting to catch up with them. Soto and Lindor will have to do more down the stretch if the Mets are going to get back on track, although it’s not going to make a bit of difference in the standings.