Mets complete another late-season collapse

NEW YORK - Mets Collapse, the sequel.

Doomed by a dreadful bullpen that failed them again Sunday, the New York Mets completed their second consecutive September slide with a 4-2 loss to Florida that knocked them out of playoff contention in the final game at Shea Stadium.

Scott Schoeneweis and Luis Ayala served up back-to-back homers in the eighth inning that put the pesky Marlins ahead, and New York (89-73) lost out to Milwaukee (90-72) for the NL wild card on the last day of the season.

"We failed. We failed as a team," David Wright said. "There's no pointing fingers. There's no excuses. We as a unit didn't get the job done."

As New York played Florida, the Brewers beat the Cubs to earn the league's last postseason spot. After filing into the clubhouse, several Mets started cleaning out lockers and saying goodbyes, another bitter winter ahead.

It was an eerily similar scenario to last year, when New York lost at home to Florida on the final day of season, ending its playoff hopes.