WASHINGTON — J.D. Martinez was hitless in two straight games over the weekend, a poor showing by his standards, but he was ready when he blasted a split ball over home plate in the 10th inning Monday night.
Not content with just slipping past the automatic runner, Martinez blasted a huge home run over the center field fence to help end the Mets’ two-game losing streak.
Martinez’s three-run homer off Hunter Harvey gave the Mets a 9-7 victory in 10 extra innings against the Nationals. The Mets (41-41) have won all four games against the Nationals this season.
The Mets lost their lead in the eighth inning, and Jake Diekman narrowly avoided a walk-off win for the Nationals in the ninth.
They capitalized in the 10th inning, scoring on a Francisco Alvarez triple and a two-run homer by Jose Iglesias that was followed by a Martinez homer.
The Nationals scored four runs in the bottom of the inning off left-hander Tyler Jay.
Reid Garrett recorded the final out with the tying runner on base.
On Sunday, Matt Festa gave up five runs in the final inning in a 10-5 loss to the Astros.
Martinez posted an .874 OPS in June and was one of the leaders of a resurgent batting lineup that has performed at a high level over the past six weeks.
That night, he came to bat in the 10th inning after Harrison Bader was hit by a pitch and hit his 10th home run of the season.
David Peterson allowed just one runner after the third inning.
He pitched 6 1/3 innings, allowing two earned runs on seven hits, one walk and two strikeouts, lowering his ERA to 3.51.
Tyrone Taylor made an error on a slow hit to right by Joey Meneses in the eighth inning (which was generously ruled an RBI double), tying the game at 3-3 after Jesse Winker walked Dedniel Nunez.
Nunez got the final two outs in the seventh and then retired C.J. Abrams and Lane Thomas to start the eighth before walking Winker.
The Nationals had a chance to win in the top of the ninth when Diekman made a throwing error to second base on a squeeze play by James Wood, but the lefty recorded three straight outs, including one by Taylor, who lunged to catch Jacob Young’s fly to right field.
The Nationals took a 2-0 lead against Peterson in the third inning after Abrams walked and Thomas singled, followed by one-run singles by Harold Ramirez and Meneses.
But Peterson avoided any major damage by getting Ildemaro Vargas to hit into an inning-ending double play.
In the previous inning, after consecutive singles by James Wood and Cavert Lewis, he got out of a pinch by getting Nick Senzel into a double play.
Wood, a promising young star, made his major league debut as a starting left fielder, hitting a home run in his first at-bat and receiving a rapturous ovation.
The Nationals acquired Wood in the 2022 trade that sent Juan Soto to the Padres.
In the fourth inning, Mark Vientos’ two-out double put the Mets on second and third base, but MacKenzie Gore got out of the jam by striking out Tyrone Taylor.
Gore was replaced in the sixth inning with two outs and Bader on second base.
Derek Law came to the mound and allowed a single to Vientos, scoring the Mets’ first run of the game.
Taylor’s ensuing grounder should have ended the inning, but the ball rolled under shortstop Abrams’ glove for an error, and Alvarez followed with a two-run double to put the Mets ahead, 3-2.
Bader’s leadoff single and stolen base sparked the comeback.
