Strasburg dominates early, bullpen comes up big late in 4-0 win

NEW YORK - Stephen Strasburg was brilliant. And his teammates did just enough against Noah Syndergaard to take a lead into the latter innings of today's matinee at Citi Field.

But as anyone who has watched only a few moments of Nationals baseball in 2019 already knew, none of this would matter if the majors' most beleaguered bullpen couldn't find a way to do its job and close out a victory.

So as impressive as Strasburg's 6 2/3 innings of scoreless ball was, and as impressive as Victor Robles' second homer of the season off Syndergaard was, the most impressive thing that happened this afternoon in Queens were the 2 2/3 scoreless innings provided by four relievers who earned some trust from their manager while closing out a 4-0 victory over the Mets.

Matt Grace, Justin Miller and Tony Sipp combined to get out of jams in both the seventh and eighth innings when the lead was only two runs. Sean Doolittle then finished it off with a scoreless ninth, given some extra cushion after his teammates tacked on two insurance runs in the top of the inning.

The Nationals (3-3) reached the .500 mark for the first time this year and won for the first time in something other than walk-off fashion.

The two electric starters were the story for six innings, with Strasburg and Syndergaard maintaining dueling no-hitters into the fifth. But as each right-hander's pitch count rose, it became clear this game would be decided not by either of them but by the respective bullpens.

That notion surely sent shivers down Nationals fans' spines, but Grace helped ease those fears when he caught pinch-hitter J.D. Davis looking at a sinker on the inside corner with two on and two out in the seventh.

The harrowing eighth inning saw Miller (who threw 25 pitches over two innings Wednesday) strike out a pair of batters sandwiched around a walk, and then saw Sipp strike out Robinson Canó looking at three pitches. Thus did the Nationals pitching staff post a zero in the eighth inning for the first time in six games.

Neither Strasburg nor Syndergaard pitched exceptionally well in last weekend's meeting in D.C., each giving up four runs. But both right-handers were in peak form from the get-go today.

Strasburg faced the minimum through three innings, and though one runner reached against him (via his own error after he broke late to cover first base on a grounder to Ryan Zimmerman) he erased it with a double play grounder.

Syndergaard was mostly dominant himself but was done in by a brief loss of command in the top of the second. He walked Juan Soto and Zimmerman to open the inning, then allowed both runners to move into scoring position with a wild pitch. The Nationals couldn't parlay that into a big inning, but they did manage to push one run across when Wilmer Difo put down a well-placed safety squeeze.

The 1-0 lead remained intact into the fifth, as did the double no-hitter. Wilson Ramos finally broke through with a line drive single to left in the bottom of the fifth, the first hit recorded by either team in this game. But Strasburg pitched out of a two-on jam to escape that inning, and then his teammate not only broke up Syndergaard's no-hitter but also added a key insurance run.

Five days earlier, Robles ripped a leadoff homer off Syndergaard at Nationals Park. The rookie did it again today, ambushing a first-pitch fastball in the top of the sixth and driving the ball on a straight line over the left field wall for the Nats' first hit of the afternoon and their second run.

They wouldn't get another hit the rest of the way until the ninth-inning tack-on rally. But thanks to Strasburg - and yes, the bullpen - they didn't even need that extra offense.