NEW YORK -- These are playoff-caliber starting pitching matchups. And the Mets have lost both. 

Max Scherzer vs. Yu Darvish and Chris Bassitt vs. Blake Snell, the two pitchers' duels the Mets have opened the second half with, are the type of games you might see in October. They're the type of games the Mets will need to find a way to win.

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This series, they haven't. The Mets lost, 2-1, to San Diego on Saturday night at Citi Field, following their 4-1 loss in the series opener Friday.

"We've beaten the good pitching, too, this year; we will again," manager Buck Showalter said. "[Snell] and Darvish both were a real challenge for us. But the good thing is, we got two really good outings from Max and Chris and had our chances."

New York is in danger of falling out of first place in the National League East for the first time since April 11. The Mets are only a half-game up on the Braves. They could be swept by a potential playoff opponent, and the Subway Series against the MLB-best Yankees is coming right after this one.

Bassitt was on top of his game for the Mets, throwing seven innings of four-hit, two-run, 11-strikeout baseball. Those 11 K's were his most as a Met -- it was his first game this season in double digits -- and they tied his career high. He also struck out 11 against the Tigers on Sept. 7, 2019, with the A's.

"I lost, so it doesn't really matter," Bassitt said.

Just as in Scherzer's strong start Friday, one swing against Bassitt made the difference. The right-hander allowed only a two-run homer to Manny Machado -- like Eric Hosmer's two-run homer was the only damage against Scherzer -- and that homer only came after Bassitt threw Machado an 0-2 slider that looked like an inning-ending strike but was called a ball.

Still, the Mets were held scoreless by Snell, and they were held scoreless in the game until there were two outs in the ninth inning, and that offensive showing won't do against teams like the Padres.

"That's why you win a Cy Young in your career. He's good," Showalter said. "I say all the time, you have to beat good pitching. And we have … I hate even talking about how good the other pitcher is, because our guy was good, and they figured out a way to push two across. And usually that doesn't stand up, but we've hit a spot here where runs are hard to come by. I have a lot of confidence that will change."

Snell and Darvish are frontline starters, yes, and it's tough to score runs against arms like that. But the Mets want to win the World Series. They have the arms to match up against the Snells and the Darvishes. But, as the games start to become magnified down the stretch, they'll need to hit those pitchers like they have at other times this season if they want to make a deep postseason run. 

Bassitt and Scherzer allowed only four runs in 13 innings across their two starts against the Padres, a potential playoff opponent, with 19 strikeouts between them. But the Mets' offense was held to just one run in 12 innings by Snell and Darvish, with their hitters striking out 14 times against the two San Diego starters.

All Bassitt can do is continue to pitch well -- he has a 2.43 ERA over his last six starts, while averaging almost seven innings -- and wait for the bats to pick him up. The Mets believe that offense is coming. 

"My job here is to eat innings. I'm eating innings," Bassitt said. "I'll be pretty upset if I'm losing in the playoffs come that time. But right now? Just keep grinding. I know these games are frustrating from all standpoints. But overall, it's OK."