Aug 2, 2015; New York City, NY, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Noah Syndergaard (34) pitches during the first inning against the Washington Nationals at Citi Field. Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports
NEW YORK — The Washington Nationals won’t see the New York Mets for another 36 days. They wouldn’t mind not seeing the Mets’ trio of ace right-handed pitchers until at least next season.
The Nationals fell into a virtual tie for first place Sunday night when Mets right-handed pitcher Noah Syndergaard threw eight strong innings as New York completed a three-game series sweep at Citi Field with a 5-2 win.
It is the first time since June 19 that Washington is not alone in first place.
The Mets synced up their post-All-Star-break rotation so that the same three pitchers in the same order — right-handers Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom and Syndergaard — would face the Nationals in a pair of three-game series, the first of which took place July 20-22.
“We saw all three of their horses twice in the matter of two weeks,” said Washington right fielder Bryce Harper, who went 3-for-13 in the latest series.
The Nationals, meanwhile, countered with left-hander Gio Gonzalez, right-hander Joe Ross and right-hander Jordan Zimmermann. Washington went 2-4 in the six games and needed an eighth-inning comeback to beat the Mets on July 22 in Nationals Park.
However, the Nationals still have their aces up their sleeves for what should be a pair of pivotal final series against the Mets. The Nationals host the Mets Sept. 7-9 before heading to Citi Field for the final three games of the regular season, Oct. 2-4.
“They haven’t seen (Max) Scherzer since day one,” Harper said of the Nationals’ right-handed Opening Day starter. “We still have ‘Stras’ (injured right-handed Stephen Strasburg) coming back.
“The Mets are a great team. It’s definitely going to be a lot of fun down the stretch.”
