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Desperation was in the air, so any path to victory would have seemed like a Hall of Fame performance for the Mets on Sunday.

Just win.

“We need as many as we can [get] and just do the best we can to stack them,” Pete Alonso said after his 10th-inning, three-run homer delivered a 5-2 victory over the Rangers at Citi Field, snapping the longest Mets losing streak of the season at eight games.

The Mets worked for this one, using a strong start from Nolan McLean and getting just enough offensively before Alonso’s 34th homer of the season ended it.

With Francisco Lindor at second base as the automatic runner to begin the bottom of the 10th inning, Luis Curvelo intentionally walked Juan Soto, a move that was expected by Alonso, who cleared the right field fence on a 1-1 pitch.

Vanquished was a losing streak that matched the longest for the Mets since 2018. They avoided a ninth straight loss — a low they last hit during Art Howe’s final season managing the team in 2004.

The biggest win of the year?

“Where we’re at, if you want to call it that … but moving forward, every one that we get is going to be the biggest one,” manager Carlos Mendoza said.

The stakes are large, with the battle for the final wild-card spot coming down to the wire. The Giants lost to fall 1 ¹/₂ games behind the Mets, and the Reds also lost to fall 2 ¹/₂ back, but the Diamondbacks won to leapfrog Cincinnati and stay two back.

McLean’s latest gem consisted of six shutout innings in which he allowed five hits, with seven strikeouts and two walks. The right-hander’s ERA dipped to 1.19. The rookie has not allowed a run in his first three starts at home — a first in franchise history.

“I wouldn’t say there’s added pressure,” McLean said, referring to the pennant race. “I am just going out there and trying to compete every single time, no matter what the [situation].”

McLean allowed singles to Joc Pederson and Rowdy Tellez in the fourth, but got Adolis García to ground into a double play between the hits. McLean struck out Josh Jung — the fourth time in the game a Texas batter was caught looking at Strike 3 on a fastball — to end the inning.

McLean escaped the fifth by striking out Wyatt Langford — his third strikeout in the inning. Cody Freeman stroked a two-out double and Josh Smith walked before McLean caught Langford looking at a sweeper.

Soto’s RBI groundout in the fifth brought in the game’s first run. Alvarez blooped a double to right field to begin the rally and, after reaching third on a Lindor groundout, dived across the plate just ahead of Tellez’s throw, after the Rangers first baseman fielded Soto’s grounder and stepped on first.

“I maybe decided to run late, but it wasn’t the best decision to do it,” Alvarez said. “I tried to run 100 percent and get there safe, but I don’t think it was the best decision with Pete behind Soto with a lefty on the mound.”

The tying run reached third base for the Rangers in the sixth before McLean got Jung to ground into an inning-ending double play. García was drilled by a pitch and Tellez singled before McLean got the grounder to Lindor that started the 6-4-3 double play.

Brandon Nimmo homered leading off the sixth to extend the Mets lead to 2-0. The blast was Nimmo’s 23rd this season and first since Aug. 29.

Brooks Raley allowed two base runners in the seventh and Pederson’s single against Reed Garrett scored both runners to tie it 2-2.

Osuna’s leadoff single started the rally before Raley drilled Smith with two outs. Garrett entered and walked Langford to load the bases before Pederson delivered.

The Mets’ frustration with runners in scoring position continued in the seventh, when Soto and Alonso were retired in succession after Alvarez reached second on Lindor’s single.

The Rangers got the go-ahead run to third base against Edwin Díaz in the ninth with one out before Smith hit a line drive — with the infield drawn in — that Lindor snagged.

Lindor threw to third and doubled up pinch-runner Ezequiel Duran.

“I feel like those are some of the little breaks we were not getting or we were the ones on the other side of the play,” Mendoza said. “That little break right there, it gets the guys going and we got back in the dugout and the momentum kind of shifted there.”