The New York Mets were defeated by the Washington Nationals by the score of 6-3 on Sunday a Nationals Park. The Nats take the series two to one.
Zack Wheeler started the game for the Mets and gave them six innings pitched, but allowed five runs, three earned on six hits and two walks while striking out five. Wheeler took the loss and is 1-4 on the season with a 4.53 ERA and 1.604 WHIP.
Jeurys Familia followed Wheeler and pitched a scoreless seventh, before Daisuke Matsuzaka allowed the Nats to tack on another run in the eighth.
Offensively, the Mets were able to put three runs on the board courtesy of a Juan Lagares RBI-single and a pair of hits and RBIs by catcher Juan Centeno. David Wright had a nice game at the plate, going 2-for-3 with a walk and a run scored.
Leadoff hitter Eric Young Jr. went 0-for-4 and saw his average fall to .221, while starting shortstop Ruben Tejada went 0-for-3 and is now batting .185 for the season.
The Mets slacked off on the fundies in this one with some questionable plays in the field (Tejada) and on the basepaths (Murphy), and Centeno had and awful game behind the plate with several gaffes including a throwing error and a passed ball.
The Mets are now 20-23 and will have a day off on Monday before they begin a three game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field on Tuesday. Rafael Montero (0-1, 4.50 ERA) makes his second major-league start for the Mets and he opposes Josh Beckett (1-1, 2.38) for the Dodgers.
