Tuesday, May 31, 2022

Mets Machine Overpowers Nats; Williams Gets 1st W

 

Trevot Williams pitching to Juan Soto in the third inning. Photo by Jason Schott.


The Mets beat the Washington Nationals, 10-0, on Tuesday night, for their fifth straight win as they improve to 34-17 on the season.

They will look to sweep the homestand tomorrow afternoon at 1:00 pm, and if you want to see New York’s other 34-win team, the Yankees, they will be hosting the Los Angeles Angels at 7 pm, making it a doubleheader day in New York City.

Trevor Williams got the start for the Mets, his fourth of the year, and was looking for his first victory. 

The big right-hander threw a solid five innings of shutout ball, in which he allowed just three hits and two walks, and notched a strikeout. He did it on an economical 80 pitches, 48 of which were strikes.

This victory was a long time coming, as it came in his ninth overall appearance of the season. He made two appearances on the Mets' western trip. He lost a start in Colorado in the second game of the doubleheader on May 21, in which he gave up four runs on three hits and a walk, with two strikeouts, in four innings in a game the Mets went on to lose, 11-3. He came on in relief on May 25 at San Francisco, and he threw 3 2/3 innings of shutout ball, with one hit and a walk allowed, with five strikeouts, in a 9-3 loss. 

Just as they did Monday night, the Mets wasted no time going to work against the Nationals' starting pitcher, Patrick Corbin, who entered this one with an uncharacteristic 1-7 record with a 6.30 ERA.

Mark Canha led off for the Mets in this one, as they played the righty-lefty matchups, and he singled, and that was followed by a blast from Starling Marte for a two-run home run his sixth of the season, along with 31 RBI.

The Mets looked to add to their 2-0 lead as Alonso drew a one-out walk with a seven-pitch at-bat, and then McNeil got a two-out single, but Corbin got Eduardo Escobar to hit a soft liner to second base. Corbin threw 31 pitches in the first inning.

The Nationals then had a chance in the second, as Dee Strange-Gordon singled with two outs, and then with Victor Robles up, Mets catcher Tomas Nido tried to pick him off first, and Strange-Gordon ran to second, and Alonso proceeded to throw it into center field, so Dee ran for third. Robles wound up walking but Alcides Escobar grounded into a force out to end the threat.

In the third, with two outs, Juan Soto grounded one to Alonso, and Williams got to the bag quicker than Pete figured, so hit toss went behind him and rolled to the Mets dugout, allowing Soto to reach base. It was Alonso's second error of the night, in as many innings, very uncharacteristic of a guy who has become a quality defender in addition to being a premier hitter.

The Nationals once again coundln't take advantage, as Bell grounded one to Alonso, who took it himself to the bag for the out.

The Mets tacked on another pair in the third, as Alonso, Davis, and McNeil all got one-out singles, and after Escobar struck out, Luis Guillorme laced one to left to bring home two and make it 4-0 Mets. On the pitch before his big it, it appeared Guillorme was hit by a pitch up and in, which would have forced in a run, so Washington challenged, and the call was reversed, bringing him back to the plate. 

The Mets went to work again in the fifth, as they notched three more singles off Corbin, the last of which from Nido went off his glove, and with the lining turning over, and Canha, who ha three hits to that point, up next, that was all for the left-hander.

Erasmo Ramirez came out of the bullpen for the bases-loaded, one-out situation, and Canha greeted him with a double down the right field line to score two, and make it 6-0. It would be the second four-hit game in his career for Canha, who spent his career with Oakland before joining the Mets this season.

After Marte struck out for the second out, Lindor hit one into right field to score two and blow it open at 8-0. It is his ninth straight game with an RBI, tied for the third-longest streak in Mets history. It comes on the day he was named the National League Player of the Week. He has 42 RBI on the season.

That closed the book on Corbin, as he went 4 1/3 innings, and allowed seven runs on 12 hits and two walks, with six strikeouts.

The Mets made it an even 10-0 in the sixth when Eduardo Escobar hit a two-run homer, his third of the season.

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