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 The Mets first baseman had good reason to be upset, as Washington
Nationals center fielder Michael A. Taylor robbed him of extra bases
and most likely two RBIs with a fine running catch on the warning
track.
Strong defense was the theme of the night for the Nationals, whose
glove work helped starter Gio Gonzalez get through six innings in a
7-2 win over the Mets.
"I thought it was at least off the wall, maybe top of the wall,"
Gonzalez said of the catch by Taylor. "I couldn't be more happy to
see Mikey T making a nice play like that. It's tough to keep your
emotions in check, but when a play like that happens, you gotta show
love where love is due."
Washington third baseman Yunel Escobar made several nice plays, and
the Nationals flashed leather in the eighth inning as well.
"They made two great plays," said Mets manager Terry Collins,
referring to the gems by Taylor and Escobar. "They run some athletes
at you. Heck of a play" by Taylor.
Washington manager Matt Williams was also impressed by Taylor, who
had some troubles in the outfield early in the year.
"He went a long way, and that wall comes up quick," Williams said.
"But it was a perfect read, perfect angle and he was able to run it
down. When he gets going after three or four steps, he's really
going. He covers a lot of ground out there."
At the plate Washington shortstop Ian Desmond, hitting .204 at game
time, smashed a two-run homer in the eighth to give the Nationals a
cushion at 7-2.
Desmond said he recently ran into Cal Ripken Jr., who told Desmond
about his struggles early in the 1993 season.
"That kind of gave me a little bit of hope," Desmond said.
The Nationals were able to score five runs (four earned) in seven
innings off Mets starter Matt Harvey, who had not pitched since July
11.
"I don't think they had anything to do with it," Harvey said of the
long layoff. "Everyone is coming off the same amount of rest. I am
not using that as an excuse."
"A lot was made about this road trip and he was jacked up because of
it," Collins said of Harvey. "I think he over-threw a little bit. He
knew he had to give us innings" after the Mets played 18 innings
Sunday.
"He kept us in the ballgame," Collins added.
The first-place Nationals (50-41) extended their lead to three games
over the second-place Mets (48-45), who have lost their last three
games to Washington.
Gonzalez (7-4), who gave up six hits and two walks, was making his
first start since July 10 at Baltimore and just his third this
month. He was able to get the better of Harvey (8-7), who has
allowed 10 runs in his last three starts.
Matt Thornton threw a scoreless seventh for the Nationals.
Casey Janssen came on in the eighth for the Nationals, and he also
benefited from strong defense as right fielder Bryce Harper caught a
liner off the bat of second baseman Wilmer Flores for the first out.
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Then catcher Jose Lobaton made a fine catch against the railing near
the Mets dugout on a pop foul hit by left fielder John Mayberry Jr.
The third out of the inning came when Janssen deflected a ball hit
up the middle by center fielder Juan Lagares, and the Nationals got
a force at second to end the inning.
Lagares had two hits and scored a run. Washington second baseman
Danny Espinosa had two hits and scored twice, and Clint Robinson,
the first baseman, had two hits and two RBIs.
Harvey entered the game having thrown 16 scoreless innings in a row
against the Nationals. But the streak did not last long as third
baseman Yunel Escobar had an RBI single in the first to score
Espinosa.
Harper, who had walked, scampered home from third to make it 2-0
after Escobar got caught in a rundown for the second out as he tried
to advance on a pitch in the dirt by Harvey.
The Nationals scored three more in the third to make it 5-0 against
Harvey as Robinson had a two-run double. Robinson scored on the
second error of the game by third baseman Daniel Murphy.
The Mets cut the lead to 5-2 in the fourth as Harvey had a two-out,
two-run bloop single to right after the Nationals intentionally
walked catcher Anthony Recker, who was hitting .140, to get to
Harvey.
NOTES: Mets RHP Jacob deGrom (9-6, 2.14) will try to build on his
All-Star success when he pitches Tuesday in Washington. He will face
RHP Joe Ross (2-1, 2.66), who has been with Triple-A Syracuse after
making three starts earlier this season for Washington. ... The
Nationals called up RHP Abel de Los Santos from Double-A Harrisburg
on Monday and sent RHP Blake Treinen to Triple-A Syracuse one day
after he gave up four runs in the ninth to the Dodgers. The
Nationals also transferred OF Jayson Werth (wrist) to the 60-day
disabled list to make room for de Los Santos on the 40-man roster.
... The Mets called up C Anthony Recker from Triple-A Las Vegas and
sent C Johnny Monell to Las Vegas. Recker was in the starting lineup
Monday, hitting eighth. ... Mets RHP Matt Harvey entered Monday with
an ERA of 0.68 in his career against Washington in six starts.
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