Game 94 lineups: Nats at Mets (Rendon delivers in NY)

NEW YORK - Third baseman Anthony Rendon again reminded fans of his fluid power swing on Thursday, crushing a pair of line drive home runs over the left field wall to help the Nationals take control in a 5-4 win over the Mets.

Fans in Flushing are well acquainted with Rendon. In 42 games at Citi Field, Rendon is hitting .302 with 20 runs scored, 11 doubles, 10 homers and 42 RBIs.

The modest Rendon said those gaudy numbers at this stadium might be more a product of the frequency of games he has played here. He has 180 plate appearances in his career at Citi Field.

"I think it's just the fact that we're in the same division, so we come here a lot," Rendon said. "Obviously, the comfortability just comes every time you go to the same spot, repetition, doing something over and over and over, I see the ball pretty well here."

Teammate Bryce Harper gets a good view of what Rendon can do at the plate batting right behind him in the order. He believes Rendon deserves to be playing in the Midsummer Classic this coming Tuesday.

"Everybody knows he's a special player," Harper said. "He should be at the All-Star game, and I'm kind of sad he's not. He's one of the best third basemen in the game. I don't think he gets enough respect, the way he plays the hot corner and the way he swings the bat. What a special talent, special player. I'm fortunate enough to be on deck most of the time he's swinging."

Manager Davey Martinez said Rendon uses his strong, quick hands to attack the baseball.

"He's got an unbelievably short swing and straight to the ball," Martinez said. "Not much in his swing, like you said. He uses his hands really well. That's good to see."

Rendon had three hits Thursday. He is hot at the plate, with a .320 average and nine homers the last 28 days.

"I told him, you got the two home runs and then had to leg out a hit, you're pretty much a complete ball player," Martinez said.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS at NEW YORK METS
Where: Citi Field, Flushing, N.Y.
Gametime: 7:10 p.m. EDT
TV: MASN, MLB.tv
Radio: 106.7 FM, 1500 AM, MLB.com
Weather: Partly cloudy, 84 degrees, no chance of precipitation, winds southeast at 9 mph

NATIONALS

RF Adam Eaton
LF Juan Soto
3B Anthony Rendon
CF Bryce Harper
1B Matt Adams
2B Daniel Murphy
C Matt Wieters
RHP Tanner Roark
SS Wilmer Difo

METS

RF Brandon Nimmo
2B Asdrúbal Cabrera
3B José Bautista
LF Michael Conforto
1B Wilmer Flores
C Devin Mesoraco
CF Matt den Dekker
SS Amed Rosario
RHP Noah Syndergaard