NEW YORK — Phillies right-hander Héctor Neris kept firing warmup pitches in Citi Field’s visiting bullpen.



Neris was clearly not ready when manager Gabe Kapler needed his most reliable reliever in a key spot during the eighth inning Friday night against the Mets. Kapler wanted Neris to face Mets slugger Pete Alonso with runners on first and second with one out in a 2-2 game. But first Kapler needed to buy additional time.



From the moment Kapler was seen signaling from the dugout to catcher J.T. Realmuto to visit the mound and talk with Blake Parker to when Neris reached the mound, three full minutes passed. In an unusual scene, second-base umpire Ramon DeJesus needed to walk nearly to the warning track to force Neris to leave the bullpen and enter the game.



Neris’ splitter lacked its typical downward movement, and the Mets capitalized, scoring two eighth-inning runs against him to take the lead. The issues surrounding Neris’...