PHILADELPHIA -- For a brief moment, there was hope. Trailing for much of Saturday afternoon, the Mets received back-to-back-to-back homers from Michael Conforto, Jonathan Villar and James McCann, who became the eighth trio in franchise history to accomplish that feat. But this represented more than merely a piece of trivia; it was tangible evidence that the Mets might just still have some fight left in them.

Then, the same old script resurfaced, as the Mets’ rapid, startling transformation from NL East favorites to fringe contenders continued with a 5-3 loss to the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. This defeat, their eighth in 10 games, was like so many that had come before it: lackluster hitting, not enough pitching, and no real threat of a different outcome until it was almost too late.

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Over the last week, the Mets have transformed a four-game division lead into a 1 1/2-game deficit. When they departed the field on Saturday evening, they risked falling into third place for the first time since April, pending the outcome of the Braves’ game against the Nationals.

“There has to be a sense of urgency, I agree with that,” McCann said. “You can’t keep saying, ‘We’ll get them tomorrow, we’ll get them tomorrow, we’ll get them tomorrow,’ because next thing you know, you’ll look up and it will be the middle of September and it will be too late.

“There does have to be a sense of urgency, but there’s a difference between a sense of urgency and panic. Just like we’ve lost five and a half games in the standings in [a week], you can gain five and a half games in the standings in [a week]. And that’s the way we look at it.”

For a time, starting pitcher Tylor Megill looked as if he might offer the Mets some answers, buzzing through the first nine Phillies batters without issue. But Megill served up a leadoff homer to Brad Miller in the fifth inning, then was allowed to stay in the game despite laboring later in the fifth. The result: a three-run Odúbel Herrera homer that effectively sealed the win for the Phillies.

Before the game, Mets manager Luis Rojas rejiggered his own lineup in an effort to squeeze out some extra offense against Phillies starter Ranger Suárez, but those efforts also proved fruitless, as the Mets did not record their first hit until the fourth. Their only runs came with the game mostly in hand in the ninth, when Conforto, Villar and McCann became the first Mets trio to hit back-to-back-to-back homers since Carlos Delgado, David Wright and Paul Lo Duca in 2007. Moments later, the Mets put the potential tying runs on base with one out, but Pete Alonso and J.D. Davis struck out to end things.

“We hit three homers today and they’re all solo, so we’re looking for a connection where we could have built a big inning,” Rojas said. “They didn’t come at any of those points.”

It has been a difficult stretch for the Mets not only because of the sheer number of losses, but also due to the lack of evidence that anything might soon change. The Mets’ offense, an issue all season, has mustered 3.9 runs per game since the All-Star break, after averaging 3.7 runs per game before it. While their three consecutive homers on Saturday could represent a spark, the Mets have had too many false starts already this season to feel confident in that.

Meanwhile, the Mets’ best pitcher (Jacob deGrom) and highest-paid player (Francisco Lindor) remained injured, with the future uncertain for both. In deGrom’s absence, nearly every rotation member has struggled, raising questions about the Mets’ decision not to add significant pitching prior to the July 30 Trade Deadline.

Megill characterized the Mets’ current attitude as “frustration, but at the same time staying positive,” which is similar to how various Mets players have spoken for weeks. But unlike some others who have preached patience, McCann noted that the Mets do need to play with more urgency now that they have entered the final third of the season playing some of their worst baseball to date.

“We don’t need to get on Twitter, we don’t need to turn on the TV to know that we’re not coming through in the big spots right now,” McCann said. “Guys know it. They know that we need a big hit here, we need a big hit there. Guys put pressure on themselves to be the guy to get the big hit. I really think that hitting is contagious, and all it takes is one day of the ball bouncing our way, and the next thing you know, we’re talking about how everybody in our lineup is coming through in a big spot.”