3 Up, 3 Down: Mets Battle To Earn Series Split

The New York Mets showed plenty of good and bad after splitting a series with the Nationals.

After exploding offensively in the opener, the Mets dropped back-to-back clunkers in Washington. However, the team was able to claw out a win in the finale to avoid dropping the series.

As has often been the case recently, there was a mixture of positives and negatives from the four games against the Nats. Let’s recap all of them in the latest edition of 3 Up, 3 Down…

3 UP

THE BO SHOW

Is this the version of Bo Bichette we’ve all been waiting for? The former Toronto Blue Jay has endured a slow start to life as a Met. However, we saw signs of the slump breaking during the series in Washington. Bichette went a combined 7-for-18 with three homers, five runs scored, and nine RBIs in the four games. Furthermore, Bichette came up with the clutch two-run single to help earn a series split in the finale. All in all, hopefully this is just the start for Bichette.

BENGE THE GREAT 

No matter what happens this year, the future looks bright for the Mets. And Carson Benge is right at the heart of that. The rookie has been unstoppable since finding his feet, and he remained red-hot against the Nationals. Benge had at least one hit in all four games, including three hits in each of the first two games of the series. He was instrumental in the series opener, finishing with three RBIs out of the leadoff spot. Having now hit safely in 10 of his last 11 games, Benge is quickly becoming a reliable presence in that lineup.

GETTING IT DONE

In the two games the Mets won in this series, the pitching really came through. David Peterson was solid in his return to the rotation, giving up just one run across five innings in the finale. In the same game, the bullpen was money, not allowing a single run to score. In particular, Devin Williams stayed hot by working out of a jam to secure the win. On Monday, Huascar Brazobán did a lot of heavy lifting to set his team up for success in the 12th inning. And, despite allowing three runs in the first inning on Wednesday, Zach Thornton showed a lot in his MLB debut by grinding out the rest of his outing.

3 DOWN

HIT AROUND

Nolan McLean did not have a great night on Tuesday. Sure, he wasn’t helped by his defense. But, still, McLean laid an egg on the mound. He gave up nine runs – six earned – on eight hits, including a pair of homers. Even on a night the offense put up six runs, that just wasn’t enough to erase the damage done by McLean. Look, even the best pitchers commit clunkers here and there, but the Mets will be hoping that McLean can put this one behind him as soon as possible.

PUNISHING THEMSELVES

If we know one thing about the 2026 Mets, it’s that they don’t make life easy for themselves. Just go check out Tuesday’s game. The defense committed two errors, including Tyrone Taylor losing track of the ball out in center field. The end result? James Wood recorded a rare inside-the-park grand slam, and a 5-0 Mets lead quickly morphed into a one-run ballgame. The entire tenor of the game changed at that point, and the Mets were unable to stop the slide.

HOT AND COLD

It probably isn’t a stretch to suggest that you don’t know what version of the Mets you will see on any given night. One night they look unstoppable, the next they look below average. We saw both of those versions in Washington. The Mets exploded offensively in the opener, but then struggled to come up with the big hit over the next two games. And the lineup had the pitching to thank in the finale given that they were only able to squeeze across two runs. The pitching was also hit and miss in this series, as was the defense. If the Mets are to get the season back on track, they are going to need to develop consistency in every single key area.