New York @ Washington preview
Nationals Park
Last Meeting ( Apr 26, 2025 ) NY Mets 2, Washington 0
A pair of pitchers off to stellar starts battle when the visiting New York Mets meet the Washington Nationals in the third of a four-game series on Sunday.
New York evened the series with a 2-0 win on Saturday.
On Sunday, the Mets send right-hander Tylor Megill (3-2, 1.09 ERA) against left-hander Mitchell Parker (3-1, 1.39).
Megill, who was 4-5 with a 4.04 ERA in 16 games (15 starts) last season, is much improved early in 2025.
"Attacking. Trusting the stuff in the strike zone," Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said of Megill. "Not nibbling as much, and I think it's just experience, maturing, having success, obviously, and keeping it simple -- whether it's two or three pitches against righties, two or three pitches max against lefties and just attacking."
Megill is 5-2 with a 4.84 ERA and one complete game in eight career games (seven starts) against Washington.
Parker, 25, is coming off his best start in the majors. On Tuesday, he tossed eight scoreless innings against the visiting Baltimore Orioles while allowing only one hit. He struck out four and walked two while tossing 99 pitches.
"I saw it from the first inning," catcher Keibert Ruiz said. "He was doing everything, getting ahead in the count, making pitches to put them away. He was really good. I'm really happy for him."
Parker is 0-1 with a 9.31 ERA in two career starts against the Mets.
On Saturday, Francisco Alvarez hit a two-run homer and Francisco Lindor had three hits for the Mets, who set a team record for wins in the month of April (17) one day after their seven-game winning streak was ended.
Lindor has hit safely in 20 of his 23 games in April, raising his batting average to .314. It was his eighth multi-hit game of the season, and fifth game with at least three hits.
Alvarez, who was activated off the injured list on Friday, got his first home run of the season after Jesse Winker picked up a two-out single despite falling behind 0-2 against Nationals right-hander Brad Lord.
Clay Holmes tossed five scoreless innings and Edwin Diaz earned his seventh save, but the pitching news was not all good for New York. Set-up man A.J. Minter left the game with left triceps tightness after throwing nine pitches in the eighth inning. He will undergo an MRI on Sunday.
"I'm just glad it wasn't my elbow," he said. "We're looking at probably an IL stint. Just hopefully come back, get this thing fixed and continue to help the team."
Dylan Crews and Luis Garcia Jr. had two hits each for the Nationals, who had won five of seven. Crews has now hit safely in 10 of his last 11 games, going 15-for-41 (.366), with three home runs, five RBIs and 11 runs scored.
The Nationals had seven hits (all singles) and two walks against six New York pitchers and left eight men on base.
"You look at what's going on, you think we're going to snap out of it and get a couple of hits," manager Dave Martinez said. "It just didn't happen today with guys on base. We got some hits, but not any big hits, timely hits."
--Field Level Media