David Peterson proved as Mets lone reliable again when needed most

In the past 35 games, the Mets have received just five starts of at least six innings.

All of them have been courtesy of David Peterson.

The lone reliable and healthy Mets starter all season has been their All-Star lefty, who again provided desperately needed length and excellence in Sunday’s 3-2 victory over the Reds at Citi Field.

Peterson’s six innings, in which he allowed one unearned run on four hits and a walk, lowered his ERA to 2.90 and shrunk his home ERA to 1.91 over 10 starts.

It was ho-hum for Peterson, and would have been revelatory for any other Mets starter.

Clay Holmes — the owner of the last non-Peterson quality start for the Mets, way back on June 7 — has appeared to tire in his first full season as an MLB starter.

Kodai Senga and Sean Manaea are building up on the fly (and slowly, especially in Manaea’s case). Frankie Montas has not yet finished six innings in four starts.

Because of the starters’ inability to pitch deep into games (and often an inability to pitch well in games), the Mets bullpen has been taxed. Entering play Sunday, their relievers had logged the third-most innings (142 ²/₃) in the majors since June 8. During that stretch, the bullpen’s 5.68 ERA has been fourth worst in baseball, likely a reflection of overuse taking its toll.

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This has made Peterson invaluable. With the starters around him still stretching out, Peterson acknowledged that it “crosses your mind” how important distance is.

“I don’t necessarily see it as pressure,” said Peterson, who ranks third in the NL in ERA among lefty qualifiers. “We’re obviously trying to go as deep as we can in every game. That’s our job and trying to give the team a chance to win.”

Manager Carlos Mendoza added: “For him to go six there, it was solid.”

Particularly because of how it began.

Peterson threw 43 pitches in his first two innings, which included the Reds’ only run against him — aided by a poor stretch from impromptu first baseman Mark Vientos on the first batter of the game. A ground single from Matt McClain and a hard single up the middle from Elly De La Cruz put the Mets in a hole. But Peterson used a double play to escape further damage.

Peterson loaded the bases in the second inning on a single, a walk and a hit-by-pitch, but used a biting slider that McClain swung over to navigate out of the jam.

After surviving, Peterson thrived and faced the minimum from the third through sixth.

A bullpen without many trustworthy pieces needed appearances from Huascar Brazobán, Reed Garrett, Edwin Díaz (who stumbled) and Ryne Stanek to snap a three-game losing streak.

“When we have certain guys [in the bullpen] being used,” Peterson said, “you want to be able to try and get as deep as you can to get it to those guys late in the game.”