Nationals: Nats Excel at All Three Facets of the Game in Win Over Mets
By Matt Weyrich
Last night, the Washington Nationals beat the New York Mets 7-1 to maintain their grasp on first place in the National League East. What are the biggest takeaways from the Wednesday evening nightcap?
At the one-quarter mark, the Nats are the class of the NL East and sport the second lowest team ERA (2.90) in baseball. They’ve also scored the twelfth fewest runs in the majors (4.2 per game) and only have three starters currently hitting above .239.
The team exploded for seven runs in Game 2 of their first series with the division rival Mets, drawing eleven walks in addition to eight hits. Every starter other than Jose Lobaton reached base at least once, and Jayson Werth led the way with three runs scored.
Gio Gonzalez (3-1, 1.86 ERA) continued his excellent start to the season with another effective performance. He allowed only one run on five hits, a walk, and five strikeouts in six and a third innings. The bullpen was able to smoothly carry the team through the ninth without any mishaps, extending the ‘pen’s scoreless inning streak to 10.1.
Bartolo Colon (3-3, 3.75) made the start for New York, taking the loss after giving up three runs on five hits, five walks, and four strikeouts in four and two thirds. Offensively, Yoenis Cespedes led the way for the home team. He smacked his 13th home run of the year to tie Nolan Arenado for the Major League-lead.
With the season fully underway, the excuse, “it’s still early,” has finally run its course. Over the next few weeks, it will become apparent which teams are really contenders and which teams are just pretenders. What stood out about the Nats’ 7-1 win yesterday? And how is that reflective of how they’ve fared thus far? Read on to find out.
Next: Switching It Up