Matt Williams still "confident" in bullpen after blowing 7-1 lead to Mets

The Nationals dropped a stunner to the Mets 8-7 Tuesday after they led 7-1 heading to the top of the seventh.

For the second straight game against the Mets, the Nationals allowed huge seventh innings: three runs Monday in an 8-5 loss and six runs Tuesday night that erased a big lead, tying the game at 7-7.

Nationals manager Matt Williams attempted to pull out all the stops in the seventh, using three relievers. But Blake Treinen, Felipe Rivero and Drew Storen combined to allow six walks, three hits and six runs.

Closer Jonathan Papelbon pitched two innings, but surrendered a pinch-hit homer from Kirk Nieuwenhuis, the first of his career, that gave the Mets an 8-7 lead they would not relinquish.

Williams on why the bullpen allowed six walks.

"Yeah, they just had issues with the strike zone tonight," Williams said. "There's good times and there's bad times, and in the bad times, you need support. That's part of my job. I've got confidence in every one of those guys in that room. Tonight wasn't their night, but I've got confidence in them. Our coaching staff has confidence in them. So we have to prepare for tomorrow.

"What we must do now is get them back up on that horse as quickly as possible," Williams said. "Felipe's been really good, Drew of course has great pedigree and been a very important part of this team. Blake's been tough on righties as well. It's important for us to be confident in that regard and we'll move forward."

The most surprising of the outings was watching the former closer Storen struggle to find the strike zone: 15 of his 22 offerings were called balls, he walked three hitters and threw a wild pitch. He also allowed a three-run double to Yoenis Cespedes.

"Balls just off the strike zone," Williams said. "Just down, just off. The pitch to Cespedes was a fastball. He started him with a breaking ball and missed, and then fastball down in the corner. But then he just didn't get back in the strike zone enough. Got the last out, scored tied, but at that point we had given up the runs and tied the score. Had to go to Pap for two."

Williams tried to explain Storen's recent difficulties.

"For me, its been not throwing the ball where he wants to," Williams said. "Breaking balls up in the strike zone have been part of the issue and tonight he just missed with those pitches."

The struggle for the bullpen continued in the eighth when Papelbon gave up the pinch-hit homer. It was the first homer he had allowed since August 3.

"He hit a fastball, strike fastball," Williams said of Nieuwenhuis' swing. "Pap uses his fastball, he throws it. Just got good wood on it and got enough of it."

A critical decision also came on the offensive side in the ninth. With Jayson Werth at first base after a base hit against Jeurys Familia, Williams had Anthony Rendon bunting with no one out. Rendon bunted right to first baseman Lucas Duda, who threw to second base to get the lead runner.

"It was bunted too hard," Williams said. "We got a chance to get Jayson on second base with arguably our two best hitters coming to the plate and didn't work. We ended up in the same position anyway with (Yunel Escobar) up there with a guy in scoring position, but Familia throws a lot of grounders and he got one to end the game."

But Familia had allowed the count to Rendon to get to 3-1. Did Williams think about taking the bunt sign off?

"Yeah, of course, but Familia is a groundball guy," Williams said. "And he missed with three. If we go full there, then we are going to swing, but just too hard of a bunt."

But with the game lost Williams now has time to reflect on what lies ahead for the Nationals. They are now six games back of the first-place Mets in the National League East with 24 games to play.

"We have to play tomorrow against a really tough pitcher (right-hander Jacob deGrom)," Williams said. "We've got to come out offensively, do what we did tonight. We had some opportunities, took advantage of those opportunities, got to do that again tomorrow. Got (Stephen Strasburg) going for us, so we are confident in that."

But what does this loss mean to Williams personally?

"Personally? There's times where things go well and you understand that there's times on the other side of that coin," Williams said. "So what do you do? Well, you pick yourself up by the boot straps and you go. So in all of those guys' lives and in mine and in the clubhouse, there've been good times and bad times. Certainly learned from the bad, appreciate the good, take nothing for granted, and come with a fresh attitude tomorrow and go to work."