The New York Mets (18-8) mounted a late comeback but couldn’t hold on, falling 5-4 to the Washington Nationals (12-14) in walk-off fashion on Friday night in D.C., ending a seven-game win streak.
New York trailed 3-0 entering the eighth before rallying against the Nationals bullpen. Juan Soto and Pete Alonso sparked a two-out rally, and Brandon Nimmo’s RBI single put the Mets on the board. Mark Vientos followed with a bases-clearing triple down the right-field line, giving New York a 4-3 lead.
Reed Garrett kept the lead intact with a scoreless eighth, aided by Tyrone Taylor’s heads-up throw to second to erase an aggressive Luis Garcia Jr. However, the Mets couldn’t close it out in the ninth. Ryne Stanek gave up a leadoff triple to Dylan Crews, then exited with an apparent injury. Jose Tena tied the game with an RBI single, and CJ Abrams later scored the winning run on James Wood’s soft single to center.
Kodai Senga allowed two earned runs over six strong innings, while Francisco Alvarez returned from an injury with a hit and a caught-stealing.
The Mets also fell victim to a controversial triple play in the fourth, the first against them in 15 years.
Game two of the series is set for Saturday at 4:05 p.m., with Clay Holmes on the mound for New York opposite Brad Lord.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].