Kyle Ross-USA TODAY Sports
The New York Mets (22-11) faced the Washington Nationals (11-22) in the rubber game of their three-game series Thursday afternoon in Washington DC. The Mets streak of nine straight unbeaten series was on the line. Taijuan Walker started for the Mets, coming off arguably his worst start in a Mets uniform against the Phillies last Thursday. Walker pitched well and Mark Canha had a great day on offense, leading the Mets to a 4-1 victory, giving them the series win and maintaining the unbeaten streak.
Walker was noticeably uncomfortable during his outing. He had a heating pad and wrap on his lower back when the Mets were at bat, and he was stretching his back/shoulders while on the mound. Despite the discomfort, he battled and gave the Mets a solid start. He tossed seven scoreless innings and gave up only three hits. He kept his pitch count low (85 pitches) by recording eleven ground-outs.
Walker’s stellar outing was helped by solid defense. He was part of a great play in the bottom of the fourth that happened because of horrendous base running by the Nationals. When Juan Soto was caught between second and third on a ground out to third baseman Luis Guillorme, Walker applied the tag on Soto for the first out, and then tried to throw out Josh Bell at second. Walker’s wild throw sailed into right field, but thanks to a heads up play by Starling Marte, Bell was thrown out at third for the second out of the inning. Walker also helped himself out by making two nice plays on come-backers in the sixth inning.
Seth Lugo pitched the bottom of the eighth for the Mets. It was his first appearance in the series, and he dominated, getting the Nationals to go down 1-2-3 with two strikeouts. Edwin Diaz got the ninth for the Mets. He struck out the first two batters, but then gave up a solo home run to Soto before getting Bell to pop out for the final out.
Walks and timely hitting gave the Mets all the offense they needed in this game. Brandon Nimmo got things started for the Mets in the top of the first with a walk, extending his on base streak to 23 games. After walks to Francisco Lindor and Jeff McNeill, Canha came through with a big two-out hit to give the Mets a 2-0 lead. The Nationals’ starter Joan Adon would ultimately walk five batters in 3 2/3 innings. The Mets added to their lead in the top of the fourth inning, when a two-out single by Tomas Nido scored Canha from third.
The Mets had quite a few hard-hit outs from the fifth inning on but did not score again until the top of the ninth, when Canha started the inning with a solo home run.
Co-Players of the Game: Taijuan Walker and Mark Canha
When the game started, it seemed like Walker was destined for a short outing. Keith Hernandez even commented that Walker might only be going five innings, to try for the win. But Walker persevered through whatever was bothering him and gave the Mets a great start.
Mark Canha had a big day at the plate today. He had three hits and three RBIs, and was involved in every run the Mets scored. His two-out hit in the first inning was the type of clutch hit the Mets were missing last year and his home run in the ninth put the finishing touches on a great game.
On Deck
The Mets head home to face the Mariners in a three-game series at Citi Field. Game one is Friday, at 7:10 p.m. Max Scherzer will be on the mound for the Mets, while Marco Gonzales is getting the start for the Mariners. The game will be on SNY.
