Mets starter Marcus Stroman is an elite athlete who is consistent, focused and self-aware. These qualities have helped him emerge as the de facto ace for the Mets in the absence of Jacob DeGrom. In his last seven games, Stroman had 40 innings under his belt and allowed 38 hits, 17 earned runs, 12 walks and struck out 39 to a 3.83 ERA and 1.25 WHIP.

His baseball IQ and athleticism have given the Mets a chance to win on a consistent basis. Also, he is giving other National League pitchers a run for their money when it comes to the 2021 Rawlings Gold Glove Award. He has the most starts of no more than 3 ER allowed among all starting pitchers this season, as Mathew Brownstein points out, which just shows how truly talented he is.

In the third inning, Stroman may have made the greatest play he’s made all season, covering third on a miscue by Jonathan Villar at second base. His instincts and speed shows he is an all-around athlete on the mound.  “That was just kind of one of those in-the-moment plays,” said Stroman.

Stroman shut out the Nationals through the first three innings, allowing no runs (including the fielder’s choice out for the ages) as he Stroman continuing to give an impressive performance.

Stroman had a rough fourth inning when the Nationals came out bats-a-blazin’. Stroman gave up singles to Ruiz, Kieboom, and Garcia to load the bases. After a walk and two sac-flies, the inning ended with the Mets up 9-3. The Mets had a big lead at that point, so they thought there was plenty of room to work with.

Stroman had his first 1-2-3 inning of the day during the fifth and was then taken out for the start of the sixth. He had a total of 94 pitches, 54 strikes on the day.

Stroman’s final line: 5 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 2 K.

Unfortunately for Stroman, who was in line for the win, the rest of the bullpen and defense couldn’t sustain the lead.

Miguel Castro came in for the sixth and gave up four runs (two earned) in a third an inning with no help from his defense. Brad Hand was brought in to finish the inning, but by the time the end came around, the Mets were up just 9-7. In the seventh, Seth Lugo blew the save, giving up a two-run homer to tie the game at nine.

In the eighth, Trevor May fought hard and finished the inning without giving up any runs. Then in the ninth, Francisco Lindor hit a two-run home run to five the Mets an 11-9 lead. Heath Hembree then pitched the bottom of the ninth and had a 1-2-3 inning to pick up the save, giving New York their seventh win in a row.

Final score: Mets 11-9