Nats wasted opportunities to seize division at trade deadline

The National League East was won at the trade deadline, plain and simple. Three hours before first pitch at Citi Field on July 31, the non-waiver trade deadline expired. At that moment, the Nationals held a three-game division advantage over the Mets leading up to the start of a pivotal series. After tonight's crushing 5-3 loss, the Nationals have somehow dropped seven games behind the Mets barely five weeks later.

The Mets offense was abysmal in the first four months of the season, ranking near the bottom in every significant run-producing category, while their stellar starting pitching kept them in striking distance. So New York general manager Sandy Alderson dealt with the issue, first trading for veterans Juan Uribe and Kelly Johnson from the Braves on July 24 and then landing slugger Yoenis Cespedes from the Tigers in the final minutes before the deadline passed.

In addition, Alderson bolstered his bullpen, shoving it in the Nats' face by beating them to right-hander Tyler Clippard.

Since making his Mets debut against the Nats on Aug. 1, Cespedes has powered the revitalized offensive attack, batting .308 (48-for-156) with 14 homers, three triples, nine doubles, 36 RBIs and 33 runs scores. That's a game-changer.

Uribe and Johnson have given the Mets versatility all over the field, combining for 10 home runs and 27 RBIs since arriving.

And Clippard has provided the necessary bridge for the Mets to get to imposing closer Jeurys Familia. Clippard has posted a 1.54 ERA in his 23 appearances since joining New York.

Beginning with Wilmer Flores' dramatic walk-off home run in the 12th inning to beat the Nats on July 31, the Mets have rolled to a 26-11 record.

Meanwhile, the Nats brass basically chose to stand pat at the deadline, banking on the returns of Anthony Rendon, Ryan Zimmerman, Jayson Werth, Denard Span and Stephen Strasburg from the disabled list to lead to them promised land.

So general manager Mike Rizzo did nothing to help a scuffling offense, instead opting to acquire veteran closer Jonathan Papelbon - despite the fact that Drew Storen had saved 29 of 31 games with a 1.73 ERA up to that point.

Papelbon has been barely been a factor and Storen's confidence appears to be completely wrecked.

Relying on injured stars backfired, as Span only made it back for two games before hip surgery ended his season. Strasburg's back tightness flared up, causing him to miss a start despite displaying dominant form since he returned Aug. 8. And Zimmerman, who became one of the NL's best hitters during a torrid stretch, has now missed three of the last four games, including two against the Mets, after tweaking his left oblique.

Werth was a liability at the plate in his first 19 games back from the DL, hitting a lowly .145 with 16 strikeouts. Rendon was nearly as bad, batting .208 with one homer and one RBI. That's precisely where the Nats lost the division - getting swept by the Mets, losing two of three at home to the lowly Rockies and then dropping six straight on a dreadful, lifeless West Coast road trip.

The Nats went 5-14 during that stretch while waiting for their key players to regain their timing as the season slipped away. Yet, Werth and Bryce Harper continued telling everyone they were "the team to beat."

Williams was asked after Wednesday's crippling loss whether the Nationals did enough at the trade deadline to help their team compared to the Mets.

"We were a completely different situation," Williams responded. "At that deadline, we had three guys coming back we didn't have before. As it turns out, it took them a little while to get going. But all three of them have been very productive to us. That being said, we look at it that way. We added those three bats we didn't have before, they just happened to come from our own team."

Pressed further about the wasted games his team suffered while those players crippled the lineup, Williams responded:

"It took 'em a while," Williams admitted. "But again, they're very productive players, all three of them, and vital parts of our team. Sometimes when you come back from a rehab, it takes a little while to get going, but they've all done it. That's the way I look at it anyway."

Strasburg was dominant through seven innings tonight, allowing just a solo homer to Travis d'Arnaud in the second. Williams chose to stay with the right-hander to start the eighth with the Nats clinging to a 2-1 lead in desperate need of a win.

Though they certainly factored in other parts of the Mets wins in this series, the trade deadline acquisitions loudly introduced themselves to tonight's games at that point.

Mets manager Terry Collins countered with Johnson as a pinch-hitter to start the frame against Strasburg. Strasburg fired a fastball and Johnson drilled it over the right field wall, tying the game.

Strasburg battled back, sitting down Kirk Nieuwenhuis for his season-high 13th strikeout. But after Curtis Granderson lined a single to center, Williams headed to the mound, opting for Storen against Cespedes. The night before, Cespedes burned Storen for a three-run double in the nightmare seventh.

This time, Cespedes mashed it even further. Storen's slider leveled off and Cespedes unloaded, pulverizing the ball high into the seats in left-center for the go-ahead two-run homer.

Collins then went to Clippard, who record the first two outs, before Harper launched his second solo homer of the game to cut the lead to one. After Rendon reached on a bunt, Clippard ended any further Nats damage.

Papelbon made a comeback seem much harder in the ninth when he allowed the Mets to add another run.

Storen's ERA is now 6.63 since Rizzo went out to get Papelbon.

"It's tough," Storen said. "Like I said, it tests you a little bit, but that's what this game is about. It's not easy. It's not easy to get here and it's not easy to stay here and it's really not easy to be an elite guy. Especially down in the bullpen where you're the hero or zero. I've been on the wrong end of things recently but I got a couple weeks to turn it around."

While the Mets have played 15 games over .500 since the trade deadline, the Nats have sunk to 17-22 over the stretch.

"I want to do everything we can to win a baseball game," Williams said. "I look at it - every morning I wake up and I look in the mirror and say, 'Do whatever you have to do today to help us win a game' Tonight, Drew's in there tonight for the righty. Didn't happen."

What has happened is a seven-game deficit in the National League East.