METS GAMEDAY

The Mets’ first half ended fittingly Sunday afternoon at Citi Field.

There was a disastrous bullpen blowup. There was little offense to be found. There were situational-hitting gaffes and multiple trainer visits to tend to ailing players. And yes, there were boos. Lots of boos. In the end, the Mets suffered their 55th loss of the season, 6-1, to the division-rival Nationals.

The last time the Mets lost this many games before the All-Star break was 1993, when they dropped 60 of their first 87 contests. They finished a league-worst 59-103 that year.

Corey Oswalt got the start for New York and pitched well, limiting the Nats to one run on two hits over five innings. But in the bottom of the fifth, with the game tied at 1, a runner on third and two outs, Mickey Callaway opted to pinch hit Dom Smith for Oswalt. Smith was hit by a pitch before Brandon Nimmo flew out to end the inning.

That ended Oswalt’s day, and the Mets bullpen then imploded in the top of the seventh. Anthony Swarzak, Tim Peterson and Jerry Blevins combined to allow five runs on just three hits. They walked two batters and hit two others.

Jeremy Hellickson, meanwhile, continued his strong first half for Washington, allowing one run on two hits and two walks while striking out six over six innings. The right-hander earned the win to improve to 4-1 on the season. Murphy, who now has 12 RBI in 28 games this season.