Mets’ pitchers implode in loss as Pirates crush seven homers

PITTSBURGH — Luis Severino’s bad night worsened after he was removed Friday with the bases loaded in the seventh inning.

The replacement was Jake Diekman, who hasn’t thrown nearly enough strikes this season.

This time Diekman’s sin was throwing a strike that Bryan Reynolds crushed for a grand slam to deliver a knockout punch in the Mets’ 14-2 loss to the Pirates at PNC Park.

But Mets relievers weren’t finished dumping gasoline and lighting matches: Ty Adcock surrendered three homers in the eighth, including a grand slam to Rowdy Tellez.

The Mets used catcher Luis Torrens to get the final out in the inning.

Three of the homers on this night came against Severino, whose worst outing of the season included seven earned runs allowed on nine hits and two walks with three strikeouts.

Yasmani Grandal and Michael A. Taylor delivered the jolts against Adcock in the eighth before Tellez’s grand slam (his second homer of the game).

The Pirates tied a club record with their seven homers.

The Mets lost a third straight — their longest losing streak since they were swept three games by the Dodgers in late May — and fell two games below .500.

If the Mets’ brutal pitching performance wasn’t enough, there was also the matter of Paul Skenes.

The Mets got introduced to the stud rookie and became the latest team deflated by his high-octane arsenal.

Skenes (5-0) left to a standing ovation from the sellout crowd of 37,037 after allowing two earned runs on four hits and two walks with eight strikeouts over seven innings.

The right-hander has allowed two earned runs or fewer in eight of 10 starts to begin his major league career.

Jeff McNeil jumped on an 0-2 fastball from Skenes in the third inning and launched it for a leadoff homer that gave the Mets their first run.

The homer was the fifth this season for McNeil, who also went deep the previous Friday to open a series against the Astros.

Pete Alonso’s double leading off the fourth led to the Mets extending their lead to 2-0.

Francisco Alvarez was in extreme discomfort after getting drilled in the left elbow by a 99-mph fastball, but remained in the game. Alonso, who had reached third on DJ Stewart’s fly to right, scored on Jose Iglesias’ RBI fielder’s choice.

But the Pirates throttled Severino in the bottom of the inning with homers from Tellez and Jack Suwinksi that tied it 2-2.

Tellez crushed a changeup 425 feet to give the Pirates their first run. One out later, Suwinski hit a 96-mph fastball into the right-field seats.

In the fifth, Severino allowed his third homer of the night: Reynolds followed a walk to Joshua Palicios with a shot over the fence in right-center to place the Mets in a 4-2 hole.

It was the first time this season Severino surrendered three homers in a game.