Two in a row counts as a streak. Nats fans wish the beleaguered Triple-A quality Mets could stick around for another few weeks. Yesterday, Craig Stammen pitched the Nats to a win, 3-1, barely missing a chance to be the second Nats pitcher to throw a complete game shutout.
Stammen pitched into the 8th, chewing through the Mets lineup a few times. He gave up just four hits, walking two and striking out five. He deserves all the credit in the world for keeping the batters off balance.
But, to be somewhat fair, this isn't your typical major league lineup. Consider the names he faced: Angel Pagan, Angel Berroa, Cory Sullivan and the mediocre, Kearns-like Jeff Franceour.
That's not exactly a murderer's row. It's more like a make-a-prank-phone-call row.
An average major league pitcher should be able to dominate that lineup more often than not. So be happy for Stammen's performance -- he did do it, after all -- but put your enthusiasm in context.
Stammen would've been working on a shutout were it not for another one of those Natstastic Little League plays. In the sixth, Angel Pagan hit a flyball to center. Nyjer Morgan took the great circle route to the ball, coming in, then swooping around to his right. The ball kept carrying, though, and it went over his head as he chased behind.
When Morgan fielded the ball on the track, Pagan was well on his way to third. Morgan fired the ball to Cristian Guzman who inexplicably tried to throw the sure-to-be-safe Pagan out at third. But he hurried the throw, flinging it wildly past third.
Pagan trotted home, scoring the Mets' first and only run.
Even when the Nats win, they'll screw a thing up or two. But the W still stands, giving the Nats a series victory for the first time in what seems like a decade. But sadly the Mets leave town, and an actual major league hitter, Albert Pujols, comes to town.
Chris Needham used to write Capitol Punishment. Now he twitters about the team, except on nights where he walks to get ice cream.
