WASHINGTON — That S.O.S. originating from the bottom of the Potomac River around 4:20 p.m. Thursday was the Mets, begging for a rescue.
Two bodies down, an ugly Zack Wheeler start and series loss to the Nationals translated into maybe the worst day of this season for the Mets. A weekend trip to Miami might help, but how much?
Michael Conforto departed with a concussion and Jeff McNeil with lower abdominal tightness, shortening an already underwhelming lineup in the Mets’ 7-6 loss at Nationals Park that pushed them two games below .500.
“We had some tough things happen today, but we’re not going to give up,” manager Mickey Callaway said. “Those guys in there definitely will never quit.”
Conforto received a concussion upon colliding with Robinson Cano chasing Howie Kendrick’s pop-up in the fifth. Conforto will be placed on the seven-day injured list for concussions and examined Friday. He was scheduled to take the train back to New York as the Mets were preparing to fly to Miami.
Unclear is the severity of the concussion and how long it might keep Conforto sidelined. The Mets have dealt with such situations in the past — most notably with Ryan Church and Jason Bay, both of whom were sidelined for extended periods. Bay suffered two concussions with the Mets that may have contributed to his disappointing tenure with the club.
“[Conforto’s] face hit my shoulder,” Cano said. “I hit him really hard. That is the last thing you want to happen.”
The ball landed near the foul line for a double, and Conforto was escorted from the field by Callaway and trainer Brian Chicklo. Moments later, Gerardo Parra smashed a two-run homer against Wheeler that put the Mets in a 6-4 hole.
“[Conforto] hit the ground pretty hard and was kind of dazed when I got out there,” Callaway said. “He was kind of stumbling around a little bit, so right then and there we knew we were going to have to get him out of the game.”
McNeil departed the game as the Mets took the field in the third with abdominal tightness. In the previous half-inning he singled as part of the Mets’ four-run inning that tied the game.
McNeil blamed scar tissue from previous sports hernia surgeries for his discomfort.
“I was running to first base and once I got there it felt tight,” McNeil said, noting he has experienced such discomfort in the past, but never had to miss significant action.
The Mets rallied for two runs in the ninth against lefty Sean Doolittle, but left the bases loaded as disappointing Keon Broxton struck out to end the game. Broxton blamed his lack of playing time for his 1-for-25 (.040) nosedive since April 15.
“Every time I get up there I feel like I have to do more than I have to do just to keep playing,” Broxton said.
Wheeler had a rough performance in which he surrendered six earned runs on 11 hits and two walks over six innings and raised his ERA to 4.85. The Nationals scored all their runs against Wheeler in the first and fifth innings.
“I take responsibility for today, because we scored some runs,” Wheeler said.
Conforto’s three-run homer in the third tied it 4-4 and cleaned the slate for Wheeler, who had a disastrous first inning. The homer was Conforto’s ninth of the season and continued a hot stretch — he was 6-for-13 (.462) with two homers over his previous four games.
Cano’s RBI double in the third — the Mets’ third hit in the inning, including a Wheeler single — sliced the Nationals’ lead to 4-1 before Conforto unloaded against Erick Fedde, who had entered an inning earlier when Anibal Sanchez departed with left hamstring soreness.
Wheeler barely survived a first inning in which the Nationals sent nine batters to the plate and scored four runs. Adam Eaton’s infield squib and Victor Robles’ ground-ball single started the rally. But the Nationals’ contact began increasing with Anthony Rendon’s RBI single before Juan Soto walked. Kendrick hit into a double play, giving the Nationals their second run, before Parra and Kurt Suzuki each blasted an RBI double that sunk the Mets in a 4-0 hole. Wheeler needed 31 pitches to get through the inning.
Suzuki delivered an RBI single in the seventh — the run was charged to Daniel Zamora — extending the Nationals’ lead to 7-4. But the Mets rallied, with pinch-hitter Wilson Ramos and Juan Lagares each delivering an RBI single in the ninth.
“Hopefully that last inning will wake us up,” Cano said, “and we go to Miami and get a different result.”