Nationals Fall Apart Late as Mets Pull Away for 7-1 Victory
The Washington Nationals carried a one-run lead into the seventh inning Saturday afternoon, but a late collapse turned a competitive game into a 7-1 loss to the New York Mets at Nationals Park. Washington managed only three hits, while New York scored all seven of its runs over the final three innings to take the second game of the season-ending series.
For six innings, the Nationals appeared positioned to grind out a low-scoring victory. Washington scored the game’s first run in the bottom of the third when Abimelec Ortiz lifted a sacrifice fly that brought home the game’s only run until the seventh. Mets rookie Carson Benge prevented further damage with a difficult backhand catch in right field on the play, helping keep New York within a run.
Early gives Nationals three strong innings
Connelly Early made his Nationals debut and provided an encouraging performance. The left-hander retired nine of the 10 batters he faced over three scoreless innings, surrendering only one hit. Washington had activated Early from the injured list Saturday after he recovered from left elbow inflammation following his acquisition from Boston in July.
Jake Irvin took over and initially maintained Washington’s advantage. The Mets failed to score through six innings, but the game completely changed when New York’s lineup reached Irvin in the seventh. Irvin ultimately took the loss and fell to 2-10 with a 5.48 ERA.
Ewing changes the game in the seventh
A.J. Ewing delivered the decisive swing. With the Nationals still leading 1-0, Ewing launched a three-run home run off Irvin on an 0-2 curveball, turning Washington’s one-run advantage into a 3-1 deficit. It was Ewing’s 11th home run of the season and ended an 0-for-10 stretch at the plate.
Washington barely had time to recover before Ronny Mauricio struck again. Three pitches after Ewing’s homer, Mauricio drove a fastball out for a solo shot, extending New York’s advantage to 4-1. The back-to-back homers gave the Mets complete control after the Nationals had held them scoreless for the first six innings.
The Mets added another run in the eighth when Benge scored on a fielding error by Nasim Nuñez. Benge finished with three hits, giving the rookie his 44th multihit game and his 13th game with at least three hits this season.
Mauricio puts it away
Mauricio delivered another blow in the ninth, launching a two-run homer off Richard Lovelady to push New York’s lead to 7-1. The switch-hitter homered from both sides of the plate for the first multi-homer game of his major league career. His second blast traveled 411 feet, according to Statcast.
Mauricio’s performance highlighted a brutal final three innings for Washington. After holding New York to zero runs through six, the Nationals surrendered four in the seventh, one in the eighth and two more in the ninth. New York finished with nine hits compared with only three for Washington.
Tong shuts down Washington
Mets starter Jonah Tong made sure the Nationals could not answer New York’s late offensive surge. Tong allowed just one run and three hits over five innings while striking out a career-high nine. The rookie finished his season 6-3 with a 3.82 ERA across four starts and three relief appearances.
Dedniel Núñez followed Tong with a dominant sixth inning, striking out all three batters he faced. Núñez earned the victory and improved to 2-1, while New York’s bullpen kept Washington scoreless for the remainder of the afternoon.
Washington simply could not generate enough offense. The Nationals finished with three hits and went scoreless over their final six trips to the plate after Ortiz’s third-inning sacrifice fly. Statcast credited Washington with a .118 expected batting average for the game, illustrating how few dangerous scoring opportunities the Nationals created.
Soto exits after hit-by-pitch
There was also an injury concern for New York late in the game. Juan Soto left in the ninth inning after Lovelady hit him in the right hand with a 91.7 mph sinker. Mets manager Andy Green said afterward that X-rays were negative.
The loss dropped Washington to 76-85 while New York improved to 74-87. The Mets also secured their sixth consecutive season-series victory over the Nationals, taking a 7-5 advantage in the 2026 matchup entering Sunday’s finale.
Up Next
The Nationals and Mets close the 2026 regular season Sunday in Washington. New York is scheduled to start left-hander Sean Manaea, while Washington is expected to counter with DJ Herz. The finale was moved up to 1:05 p.m. because of expected inclement weather in the Washington area.
MSB Take
For six innings, this looked like a strong Nationals pitching performance and an opportunity to finish the season with another win. Early’s three scoreless innings were particularly encouraging, and Washington’s pitching staff gave the offense plenty of time to build on its 1-0 advantage.
Instead, the seventh inning changed everything. Ewing’s three-run homer flipped the game, Mauricio immediately followed with another homer, and the Nationals never recovered. Washington’s three-hit offensive performance left almost no margin for error, and once New York finally broke through, the game quickly got away.
The Nationals have one game remaining in the 2026 season, and the finale provides one last opportunity for some of Washington’s younger players to finish the year on a positive note.
