Nationals catcher Josh Bard laid down a hefty tag on the Mets’ Angel Pagan in the second inning, but forgot the most important thing — the ball. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)- Mets 6, Nationals 2: Contributing seven solid innings, veteran hurler Livan Hernandez (6-5) pushed his impressive career record against Washington to eight wins in nine decisions with the Mets’ 6-2 victory at Nationals Park last night. New York jumped all over debutant J.D. Martin (0-1), who could only last four innings in his first career major league effort. On the other hand, Hernandez was impressive all night, allowing only five hits — although he was given plenty of help from the Metropolitans’ first two innings at the dish: two doubles in the first and a string of singles in the second staked the Cuban to an early 5-0 lead. As usual, the home team found themselves in a hole too deep to navigate — a hole which they’ve fallen into numerous times since interim manager Jim Riggleman took the reins one week ago. One bright spot? Pitcher Tyler Clippard, whose three shutout innings of mop-up work — including no hits and five strikeouts — could earn him another look as a starter sometime soon.
- Lasers 24, Kastles 16: The Kastles missed a chance to keep pace in the race for the final playoff spot in the East, losing on the road to undefeated Springfield. The Lasers, who have been dominant throughout the WTT slate, broke the Kastles eight times. Scott Oudsema finally got back on track for D.C., dispatching the spectacularly named Raven Klaasen in the men’s singles match — but Washington lost the next three games to fall a half-game behind Boston in the race to see which team can make the playoffs with a losing record.
