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BASEBALL METS 8, NATIONALS 4 METS PREVENT SWEEP

September 20, 2007 12:35 am

BY RICH CAMPBELL

WASHINGTON--The Washington Nationals arrived at RFK Stadium yesterday with a chance to send the New York Mets to the brink of catastrophe.

The Nationals came from behind to take the first two games of the series, and another win would have had the Mets pounding on the panic button. New York's lead in the NL East had already shrunk from seven games to 1 in a week. Imagine the chaos in New York's clubhouse if fourth-place Washington swept the series.

But the Mets weren't going to boot the ball around and blow leads forever. They restored order to the baseball universe and stopped their freefall by pounding out an 8-4 victory over Washington in front of 20,558.

Still, the Nationals were happy to take two out of three from their division rivals and cause them some problems.

"That's what you want to do, win series," manager Manny Acta said. "We feel good at home with the way the kids have played. We battled them."

New York ended its five-game losing streak and did not lose ground in the division standings for the first time since Sept. 12. Washington, meanwhile, remained three games ahead of Florida for fourth place.

The Nationals were undone by the same sloppy play that plagued the Mets in the first two games of the series.

First baseman Robert Fick committed a costly throwing error during New York's three-run seventh inning, and Felipe Lopez was picked off first base in the third after a lead-off single.

The Mets managed to leave town with some momentum after blowing large first-inning leads on Monday and Tuesday. They even finished the series with a comeback of their own after overcoming a 2-1 second-inning deficit.

Nationals starter Matt Chico (5-9) contributed to that lead with an RBI single in the second, but he couldn't hold it.

Chico has recently struggled to finish his pitches, which causes the ball to cut when it isn't supposed to, manager Manny Acta said before the game.

"I made some mistakes, and they capitalized on them," Chico said.

Chico retired the Mets in order in the first and fourth innings, but he struggled otherwise. In 5 innings, he gave up five runs on seven hits, including a bizarre double by Jose Reyes in the third.

Reyes led off with a fly ball to deep left field. As left-fielder Wily Mo Pena tracked it to the wall, the ball disappeared in the padding along the top of the fence. Pena had no idea where it was, while Reyes was awarded an automatic double and scored two batters later on David Wright's single.

Chico remained winless in seven starts since July 31.

"He didn't throw enough first-pitch strikes," Acta said. "But he did battle for us. He left some pitches up the zone against those guys, and you just can't afford it."

Washington's bullpen, which quieted the Mets' bats the two previous nights, did nothing to stop them, either.

Chris Schroder surrendered a season-high three runs in the seventh inning, although only one was earned.

After pinch-hitter Shawn Green led off with a single and Reyes sacrificed him to second, Luis Castillo hit a grounder to Fick at first. Fick's throw to Schroder covering the bag was low and sailed into foul territory, allowing Green to score from second.

Castillo then scored on Wright's double. Wright came around on Moises Alou's single to make it 8-3 and put the game out of reach.

The Nationals weren't overmatched by Mets starter Mike Pelfrey, but they couldn't repeat the performance that led to 21 runs during the first two games of the series.

They missed a great scoring opportunity in the sixth inning. Trailing 5-3 with runners on first and third and no outs, Mets reliever Jorge Sosa struck out pinch-hitter D'Angelo Jimenez and got Nook Logan to ground into a double play.

"I think Sosa won the game for them," Acta said. "He came in and did a tremendous job to get out of that jam. That could have been the difference."

EXTRA BASES

Shortstop Cristian Guzman will take part in a simulated game tomorrow to test his surgically repaired left thumb against live pitching.

Ross Detwiler, the Nationals' top draft choice in 2007, likely will pitch, manager Manny Acta said. If Guzman performs well and has no setbacks, he could return to the lineup before the end of the season.

First baseman Dmitri Young missed his fourth straight game with a stiff neck.

The final game at RFK Stadium will start at 12:05 p.m. on Sunday (it had previously been scheduled for 1:35 p.m.). The first 30,000 fans will receive a giveaway T-shirt, and several Washington Senators will attend. Frank Howard is scheduled to throw out the ceremonial first pitch, and home plate will be dug up after the game.

METS 8, NATIONALS 4

New York

Washington

New York

011

021

300--

8

Washington

020

010

001--

4

a-struck out for Albaladejo in the 6th. b-fouled out for Sosa in the 8th. c-singled for Abreu in the 9th. 1-ran for Alou in the 7th. E--JBReyes (12), Wright (20), Beltran (4), Fick (5). LOB--New York 5, Washington 9. 2B--JBReyes (33), Wright (38), Alou (16), Conine (13), Belliard (30). 3B--LCastillo (1). RBIs--LCastillo (15), Wright 3 (102), Alou (38), Lo Duca 2 (51), Zimmerman (88), Kearns (63), Flores (24), Chico (3). S--JBReyes, Conine, Chico. SF--Wright, Lo Duca 2. GIDP--Logan. Runners left in scoring position--New York 2 (Alou, Pelfrey); Washington 3 (Logan, WPena, Belliard). Runners moved up--Beltran 2, FLopez, Zimmerman, Flores. DP--New York 1 (JBReyes and Conine).

New York

Washington

Pelfrey pitched to 2 batters in the 6th. Inherited runners-scored--JSosa 2-0, Albaladejo 1-1. IBB--off Chico (Milledge) 1. WP--Pelfrey.

T--3:14. A--20,558 (46,382).