MILWAUKEE -- Brett Baty didn't search for an excuse.
Not after the ball tailed just beyond his glove in right field. Not after Joey Ortiz raced into third with a two-run triple. And not after those runs were crucial to the Mets' 4-3 loss to the Brewers on Wednesday afternoon at American Family Field.
"Three runs are on me right there," Baty said. "That's the difference in the game. ... I've got to make that play."
The Mets entered Wednesday trying to thread a difficult needle.
With Juan Soto getting a scheduled day off and Luis Robert Jr. sitting out as the club continues to ease him back from the injured list, interim manager Andy Green opted for Baty's left-handed bat over natural outfielder Tyrone Taylor. Baty has logged innings in right field this season, but his primary position remains third base.
The decision paid off at the plate. It didn't in the field.
After Marcus Semien's second-inning homer gave New York a 1-0 lead, Christian Scott appeared on the verge of escaping trouble in the bottom half of the inning. Milwaukee had runners on the corners with nobody out before Scott induced two quick outs, leaving him one out away from preserving the lead.
Instead, Ortiz lined a fastball toward the right-field warning track. Baty got a good break, but the ball continued carrying toward the line and dropped just beyond his outstretched glove for a two-run triple. Christian Yelich followed with an RBI single, suddenly turning a one-run Mets lead into a two-run deficit.
Green didn't view it as a poor route.
"I think he had a good jump on it, good bead on it," Green said. "Just righty hitting the ball to right field on the track. Ball tails on you quite a bit, and tailed a little more than he expected."
Baty's evaluation was much shorter.
"There's no excuses," he said. "That play has to be made."
Ironically, Baty nearly erased the moment himself three innings later, launching a solo homer that landed just beyond the right-field wall not far from where Ortiz's drive had fallen. It cut Milwaukee's lead to 3-2, but the Mets never fully recovered.
Because the play was ruled a triple rather than an error, all three runs charged to Scott were earned. The right-hander wasn't interested in dwelling on the ruling.
"There's no shift in any way," Scott said. "It's part of the game. It happens. I know he's going to pick me up next time too."
Scott instead pointed to his own execution after throwing 89 pitches in 3 2/3 innings against a Brewers lineup that consistently extended at-bats.
"They had a really good plan," Scott said. "They didn't expand the zone very often, so they really pushed me into the strike zone. ... I've got to do a better job getting ahead early."
Green agreed Scott wasn't at his sharpest, but thought one defensive play could have changed the entire conversation around his outing.
"I do think there is a world where we make a play behind him and he gets through five," Green said. "And we're saying that was gutsy."
That's the balancing act the Mets continue navigating.
The Mets’ defensive struggles have been a recurring theme throughout the season. Entering Wednesday, New York ranked 24th in the Majors with minus-11 Fielding Run Value, according to Statcast, and its 69 errors were tied for the second most in baseball.
They've prioritized versatility throughout the season, moving players around the diamond in search of their best offensive lineup. One day after Green praised the club's defense, that same approach left Baty in right field for the game's defining play.
Green said he'd make the decision again.
"We have faith that Brett can make that play," Green said. "He has that faith, too."
On Wednesday, though, one ball that tailed just a little farther than expected proved enough to send the Mets to another loss -- and served as another reminder that, for a club trying to climb back into contention, the margin for error remains painfully small.