Washington Nationals Defeat New York Mets
It was an unexpected letdown for the Mets on Tuesday night as they lost what seemed to be a straightforward victory. After Nolan McLean triumphed early, giving the Mets a sizable five-run lead, it all fell apart from there.
Despite a promising start, McLean struggled through some odd moments, and the team’s defense began to falter. The once-vibrant offense soon grew silent. As the night wore on, the Mets ended up losing to the Nationals, 9-6, marking the end of their three-game win streak.
James Wood’s inside-the-park grand slam in the second inning gave the Nationals newfound momentum, overshadowing McLean’s performance, which was his worst to date. He allowed nine runs, six of which were earned, over 5.3 innings, with eight hits and two walks. McLean’s ERA shot up from 2.92 to 3.57, but his endurance kept the relief pitchers from having to work harder.
“I didn’t pitch well, but that’s on me to perform better,” McLean reflected. “The other team hit well, but I just wish I had executed better.”
Bo Bichette had put the Mets in a strong position early with two home runs within the first two innings, giving them a comfortable 5-0 lead. However, that lead was short-lived as the Nationals’ bullpen came in strong, recovering well after the rocky start.
In his major league debut, Nick Morabito started in left field but unfortunately went 0-for-3. He also faced a tough moment when Wood’s hit bounced off his glove and contributed to that pivotal grand slam.
“I hit it hard, and just missed it,” Morabito admitted, reflecting on the misplay. “It should have been mine.”
Earlier the night before, the Mets had a massive show of offensive power, scoring ten runs in the twelfth inning for a decisive 16-7 win, so this outcome felt particularly disappointing.
The silver lining was that Bichette, who had been in a slump lately, finally found his rhythm before Juan Soto added a homer in the seventh. In the first inning, he opened the night with a two-run homer after Carson Benge’s single.
With Soto and Mark Vientos reaching base, Marcus Semien’s sacrifice fly brought in the third run of that inning, followed by Bichette’s second home run in as many games to stretch the lead to 5-0.
Yet, things started to unravel after two outs in the second inning. McLean allowed Joevit Vivas a double, and Drew Millas came up with two hits. Wood’s inside-the-park grand slam, marking the second in Nationals history, took away the Mets’ lead.
Manager Carlos Mendoza noted, “That 0-2 pitch really hurt us. That whole inning really cost us.”
McLean’s challenges continued as Jose Tena hit a home run in the third, tying the game at five. From there, things spiraled rapidly. A passed ball from Luis Torrence allowed the Nationals to surge ahead, and a sacrifice fly added more runs, pushing the score to 9-5.
The Mets’ defense was shaky as a ground ball from Tena was mishandled and led to issues in the fourth inning. With runners on base, a miscommunication in the cutoff then allowed the Nationals to extend their lead, seemingly capitalizing on every mistake.
“It wasn’t good,” Mendoza criticized his team’s defensive efforts. “We’ve been making mistakes on basic plays, which is uncharacteristic for us. We know we can do better.”
