Mets 11, Nationals 3
Eric Young Jr., Juan Lagares and Daniel Murphy each collected three hits, two RBIs and two runs scored as visiting New York belted a season-high 17 hits to defeat Washington for the second straight day.
Josh Satin also had three hits and Omar Quintanilla added a two-run double in the second inning. Matt den Dekker recorded his first major-league hit and RBI with a run-scoring single in the six-run third as the Mets won for the fourth time in five outings.
The offensive onslaught was more than enough for rookie Zack Wheeler (7-3), who improved to 5-0 on the road after allowing two runs on five hits in 6 2/3 innings. Denard Span ripped three singles to extend his career-high hitting streak to 14 games, but the Nationals dropped 7 1/2 games behind Cincinnati in the race for the second wild card.
Quintanilla's fly ball to center eluded the grasp of Span, plating Travis d'Arnaud and Lagares to give New York a quick 2-0 lead. Murphy ignited a mammoth third with an RBI single off Dan Haren (8-12) before Ike Davis tacked on a run with a sacrifice fly, but he exited the contest with a strained right oblique.
Den Dekker's blooper to shallow left scored d'Arnaud as the Mets seized a 5-0 advantage. Wheeler worked a bases-loaded walk before Young secured his second hit of the inning with a single to left field, plating den Dekker and Quintanilla to put the game out of reach.
GAME NOTEBOOK: After being publicly criticized for failing to run out a grounder in the eighth inning on Friday, Washington LF Bryce Harper attempted to stretch a double into a triple with his team trailing by nine runs in the eighth. Harper was thrown out at third base. ... After retiring his first four batters, Haren saw the wheels come off in the third. The 32-year-old exited after permitting seven runs on nine hits in 2 2/3 innings. ... Satin's three hits matched his total from his previous seven games.