Washington Nationals Rapid Reaction: 8th Inning Comeback Leads Nats To Series Win Over Mets

Jul 22, 2015; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals left fielder Matt den Dekker (21) and shortstop Ian Desmond (20) are congratulated by second baseman Danny Espinosa (8) after scoring against the New York Mets during the eighth inning at Nationals Park. The Washington Nationals won 4-3. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

For the first seven innings yesterday, the Washington Nationals were struggling to score runs against Noah Syndergaard and the Mets. While the Nats had drawn five walks, they were leaving runners on base and only had one run, which came on a Michael Taylor RBI single in the bottom of the fourth. It looked like the big news of the day was going to be a series loss and the injury that caused Yunel Escobar to leave the game in the bottom of the second.

However, against a Mets bullpen that has been one of the best in the National League in terms of ERA, the offense was abele to string hits together and put three runs on the board against setup man Bobby Parnell, which included a two-run single by Taylor and a RBI double by Danny Espinosa.

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Despite running into some trouble in the fourth inning, Jordan Zimmermann still put together a quality outing as he gave three runs over seven inning to keep the Nationals in the game. He threw 102 pitches, but 71 of them were for strikes. While Zimmermann’s ERA has been 3.94 in four starts, he has not lost a game since June 17 against the Tampa Bay Rays.

This game wasn’t a must win for the Nationals since they would have still been up a game in the NL East with a loss, but it was a mini-statement from Matt Williams’ club. The Mets had set up their rotation to put their top three starters in this series. Now, these two teams will play next weekend and the Nationals should have more of their regulars back in the lineup at Citi Field against these same three pitchers.

Before the Nats begin a four game series tonight against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park, here are my takeaways from yesterday’s 4-3 win:

Next: Taylor Picks Up 3 RBI's