WASHINGTON — Edwin Diaz didn’t have a lead to protect, but entered for the ninth inning anyway Friday night to face the heart of the Nationals lineup with the hope of getting the Mets to extras with a chance.
But the closer never recorded an out, leaving the Mets on the short end of a 1-0 decision at Nationals Park, their second consecutive shutout loss.
Overall, the Mets have gone 21 innings without scoring. Before that drought they had been enjoying one of their most fruitful scoring stretches of the season, averaging six runs in the previous seven games.
Diaz walked Juan Soto on a full-count pitch leading off the ninth before Ryan Zimmerman hit a grounder through the first-base hole and Yan Gomes won it on a solid RBI single to left field. Diaz became the option for the ninth after Seth Lugo indicated he was tired after he recorded the final out of the eighth. Lugo had thrown 37 pitches over two innings on Tuesday.
The offensive futility (two singles and four walks) came after the Mets were shut out Thursday by the Cubs, a game they finished with only two hits. On Wednesday, the Mets went scoreless in their final three innings.
Though the Mets are awaiting offensive standouts such as Jeff McNeil, Michael Conforto and Brandon Nimmo to return from injuries, manager Luis Rojas said the team’s recent offensive drought hasn’t underscored their absences.
“I’m excited that guys are progressing,” Rojas said. “But this group of guys has played their butt off, they have been great. There is so much they have done from the offensive standpoint, from the defensive standpoint. You can’t expect to go away from this group that easy and say we’re going to get our offense going.”
Two significant members of the Mets’ lineup have slumped simultaneously. Francisco Lindor, after a recent surge, is 1-for-16 (.063) and Pete Alonso has gone 3-for-26 (.115). Rojas was asked about Alonso specifically after Friday’s game.
“The ball just beat him a couple of times, that is why he flew out three times to right field,” Rojas said. “But I actually like how he looked at the plate. The results weren’t there, just one walk, but I will take this over being overly anxious, sometimes when he tries to create a lot of power.”
Joey Lucchesi lasted a season-high 5 ¹/₃ innings, scoreless, giving up no runs, four hits and two walks. He was allowed to face the top of the batting order a third time through and was removed after Trea Turner and Soto reached in succession with one out in the sixth.
Miguel Castro replaced Lucchesi and was efficient in escaping trouble, getting Zimmerman to hit into the Nationals’ third double play of the night. Lucchesi was once an obvious weak spot in the Mets’ rotation, but his ERA has dropped from 9.19 to 4.46 over the past month. In all five of those appearances, Lucchesi limited opponents to one earned run or fewer for a 1.19 ERA.
“I was just thinking way too much in my head during [previous] outings,” Lucchesi said.
Lucchesi’s shakiest inning was the third, when the Nationals loaded the bases before Turner hit into a double play. Tomas Nido’s throwing error in the inning, sandwiched between a single and walk, fueled Washington’s rally.
Nationals starter Erick Fedde was a handful for the Mets. The right-hander allowed just two hits, both singles, over seven shutout innings. The Mets tried to apply pressure with aggressiveness on the bases, but twice had runners thrown out attempting to steal. In the third, Mason Williams walked leading off and was thrown out trying to steal second. In the fifth, Luis Guillorme singled and got thrown out by Gomes in a steal attempt of second.
Castro pitched 1 ²/₃ shutout innings before Aaron Loup and Seth Lugo combined to get the Mets through the eighth scoreless.