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Walker, Mets cruise past Nats 4-1, win another series

WASHINGTON (AP) Taijuan Walker stood astride Juan Soto after tagging him out during a collision at third base that the Washington Nationals slugger felt was more violent than it needed to be.

Walker and the New York Mets are punishing the NL East.

Walker pitched seven innings of no-fuss, scoreless ball, and the Mets remained unbeaten in 10 series this season, cruising past the sloppy Nationals 4-1 on Thursday.

The burly right-hander tagged Soto at third after the Nationals' best hitter made an elementary baserunning gaffe, getting himself into a rundown after Josh Bell hit a grounder to the left side. Soto slid into Walker's forearm a few feet in front of the bag and argued for an obstruction call, but Walker already had the ball when Soto got there.

''It was unexpected. I got a little mad because it was a rundown and I didn't think he was going to slide into me,'' Walker said. ''Smart play, I guess, the guy was going to second, but in the moment I wasn't too happy about it.''

After tagging Soto, Walker threw wildly to second base, and right fielder Starling Marte threw back to third to nail Bell and end the Nationals' best chance to rally.

''Things like that, when we're behind like that, those are not good baserunning decisions,'' Washington manager Dave Martinez said. ''We need to make better decisions.''

Mark Canha went 3 for 4 with a homer and three RBIs for the first-place Mets, who took two of three from the last-place Nationals. New York has won nine series and split one, and hasn't lost two straight games in a month.

''We have a hitter of the day. We give the award out when we come in,'' Canha said. ''Today it was me, and then, what's cool about this team is, I feel like, I'm pretty sure all our hitters have won the award at some point this year. ... Someone always is the hero, and that's been the coolest part of this year.''

Walker (1-0) allowed three hits, walked one and threw 85 pitches in the longest of his four starts this season, which was interrupted by a stint on the injured list with right shoulder bursitis.

Seth Lugo struck out two in the eighth and Edwin Diaz allowed Soto's two-out homer in the ninth before retiring Bell to complete the four-hitter.

Soto said he was at fault on the rundown play, which came after he opened the fourth inning with a double off the wall in right-center.

''I was just caught in the middle of nothing,'' he said. ''I tried to slide. I didn't try to hurt him or anything like that. He's got to give me room to at least slide on the base.''

The Mets only managed five hits, but they went ahead 2-0 in the first inning on Canha's bases-loaded single. New York took advantage of wild Nationals starter Joan Adon (1-6), who walked five of the first 10 batters he faced.

Tomas Nido added a run-scoring single with two outs in the fourth that chased Adon, who also hit J.D. Davis in the back with a fastball - the 24th time a Mets batter has been hit this season, which leads the majors.

''For what it's worth, he gave us 80-something pitches,'' Martinez said of his rookie starter. ''It could have been even uglier than that. It could have destroyed our bullpen for the weekend. But he battled as far as he could battle.''

Canha homered in the ninth off Steve Cishek.

ROSTER MOVE

Needing a long relief option, the Mets recalled right-hander Jake Reed from Triple-A Syracuse and optioned righty Stephen Nogosek, who threw three hitless innings Wednesday night.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Mets: C James McCann was held out of the lineup with a sore left wrist.

Nationals: SS Alcides Escobar missed a third straight game with infection under the nail on his left index finger. Martinez said the finger has been drained multiple times but Escobar is not expected to go on the injured list.

UP NEXT

Mets: Return home to face Seattle on Friday with Max Scherzer (4-1, 2.92 ERA) starting against the Mariners' Marco Gonzales (1-4, 3.91).

Nationals: Josiah Gray (4-2, 3.45) starts the opener of a weekend series against Houston.

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Follow Ben Nuckols at https://twitter.com/APBenNuckols

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More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Mets NYM22-11	2	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	4	5	0
Nationals WAS11-22	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	4	0

Nationals ParkWashington, DC

W: T. Walker (1-0)L: J. Adon (1-6)S: (0)

NYMMets

WASNationals

.T. WalkerTaijuan Walker
P
7.0 IP, BB, SO, 85 P
.M. CanhaMark Canha
LF
3-4, 2 R, 3 RBI, HR

HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	HR	BB	SO	LOB	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	FPTS
B. Nimmo CF	2	1	1	0	0	2	0	0	.290	.413	.440	.853	4.0
S. Marte RF	4	0	0	0	0	0	1	5	.254	.304	.365	.669	-0.5
F. Lindor SS	3	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	.233	.315	.395	.710	2.0
P. Alonso 1B	4	0	0	0	0	0	1	2	.278	.345	.508	.853	-0.5
J. McNeil 2B	3	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	.321	.390	.443	.833	1.0
M. Canha LF	4	2	3	3	1	0	0	0	.313	.376	.398	.774	11.0
T. Jankowski LF	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.321	.406	.321	.728	0.0
J. Davis DH	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	2	.217	.362	.326	.688	0.5
L. Guillorme 3B	3	0	0	0	0	1	1	2	.255	.364	.383	.747	0.5
T. Nido C	4	0	1	1	0	0	2	1	.204	.200	.245	.445	1.0

HITTERS	AB
B. Nimmo CF	2
S. Marte RF	4
F. Lindor SS	3
P. Alonso 1B	4
J. McNeil 2B	3
M. Canha LF	4
T. Jankowski LF	0
J. Davis DH	3
L. Guillorme 3B	3
T. Nido C	4

HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	HR	BB	SO	LOB	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	FPTS
C. Hernandez 2B	4	0	0	0	0	0	2	1	.277	.315	.326	.642	-1.0
J. Soto RF	4	1	2	1	1	0	0	1	.264	.395	.512	.907	8.0
J. Bell 1B	4	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	.345	.439	.513	.953	1.0
N. Cruz DH	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	.170	.260	.277	.537	0.0
Y. Hernandez LF	2	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	.337	.378	.506	.884	1.0
K. Ruiz C	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	.266	.300	.362	.662	-0.5
M. Franco 3B	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	.268	.298	.390	.688	0.0
D. Strange-Gordon SS	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	.182	.182	.182	.364	-0.5
L. Thomas CF	3	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	.219	.263	.301	.564	0.5

HITTERS	AB
C. Hernandez 2B	4
J. Soto RF	4
J. Bell 1B	4
N. Cruz DH	3
Y. Hernandez LF	2
K. Ruiz C	3
M. Franco 3B	3
D. Strange-Gordon SS	3
L. Thomas CF	3

HR - M. Canha (2)
RBI - M. Canha 3 (12), T. Nido (5)
2-Out RBI - M. Canha 2 (2), T. Nido
Runners left in scoring position, 2-Out - S. Marte, J. Davis 2 (2)

2B - J. Soto (6)
HR - J. Soto (8)
RBI - J. Soto (11)
2-Out RBI - J. Soto

Outfield Assist - S. Marte
DP - (Lindor-McNeil-Alonso)

PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA	WHIP	FPTS
T. Walker (W, 1-0)	7.0	3	0	0	1	1	0	3.00	1.06	27.5
S. Lugo (H, 5)	1.0	0	0	0	0	2	0	2.92	1.22	4.0
E. Diaz	1.0	1	1	1	0	2	1	1.93	0.86	2.0

PITCHERS	IP
T. Walker (W, 1-0)	7.0
S. Lugo (H, 5)	1.0
E. Diaz	1.0

PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA	WHIP	FPTS
J. Adon (L, 1-6)	3.2	3	3	3	5	2	0	7.03	1.72	-5.0
E. Ramirez	1.1	1	0	0	0	1	0	2.08	1.00	3.5
C. Edwards	2.0	0	0	0	0	1	0	9.00	1.33	6.5
K. Finnegan	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4.38	1.22	3.0
S. Cishek	1.0	1	1	1	0	2	1	5.25	1.50	2.0

PITCHERS	IP
J. Adon (L, 1-6)	3.2
E. Ramirez	1.1
C. Edwards	2.0
K. Finnegan	1.0
S. Cishek	1.0

Pitches-Strikes - T. Walker 85-56, S. Lugo 11-9, E. Diaz 23-12
Ground Balls-Fly Balls - T. Walker 12-5, S. Lugo 0-1, E. Diaz 0-2
Batters Faced - T. Walker 23, S. Lugo 3, E. Diaz 4

Pitches-Strikes - J. Adon 84-44, E. Ramirez 22-15, C. Edwards 21-16, K. Finnegan 13-10, S. Cishek 18-12
Ground Balls-Fly Balls - J. Adon 6-1, E. Ramirez 2-0, C. Edwards 4-0, K. Finnegan 3-0, S. Cishek 1-1
Batters Faced - J. Adon 18, E. Ramirez 5, C. Edwards 6, K. Finnegan 3, S. Cishek 4

.T. WalkerTaijuan Walker
P
7.0 IP, BB, SO, 85 P
.M. CanhaMark Canha
LF
3-4, 2 R, 3 RBI, HR

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Mets NYM22-11	2	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	4	5	0
Nationals WAS11-22	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	4	0

Nationals ParkWashington, DC

HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	HR	BB	SO	LOB	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	FPTS
B. Nimmo CF	2	1	1	0	0	2	0	0	.290	.413	.440	.853	4.0
S. Marte RF	4	0	0	0	0	0	1	5	.254	.304	.365	.669	-0.5
F. Lindor SS	3	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	.233	.315	.395	.710	2.0
P. Alonso 1B	4	0	0	0	0	0	1	2	.278	.345	.508	.853	-0.5
J. McNeil 2B	3	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	.321	.390	.443	.833	1.0
M. Canha LF	4	2	3	3	1	0	0	0	.313	.376	.398	.774	11.0
T. Jankowski LF	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.321	.406	.321	.728	0.0
J. Davis DH	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	2	.217	.362	.326	.688	0.5
L. Guillorme 3B	3	0	0	0	0	1	1	2	.255	.364	.383	.747	0.5
T. Nido C	4	0	1	1	0	0	2	1	.204	.200	.245	.445	1.0
Total	30	4	5	4	1	5	6	12	-	-	-	-	-

HITTERS	AB
B. Nimmo CF	2
S. Marte RF	4
F. Lindor SS	3
P. Alonso 1B	4
J. McNeil 2B	3
M. Canha LF	4
T. Jankowski LF	0
J. Davis DH	3
L. Guillorme 3B	3
T. Nido C	4
Total	30

HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	HR	BB	SO	LOB	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	FPTS
C. Hernandez 2B	4	0	0	0	0	0	2	1	.277	.315	.326	.642	-1.0
J. Soto RF	4	1	2	1	1	0	0	1	.264	.395	.512	.907	8.0
J. Bell 1B	4	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	.345	.439	.513	.953	1.0
N. Cruz DH	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	.170	.260	.277	.537	0.0
Y. Hernandez LF	2	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	.337	.378	.506	.884	1.0
K. Ruiz C	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	.266	.300	.362	.662	-0.5
M. Franco 3B	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	.268	.298	.390	.688	0.0
D. Strange-Gordon SS	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	.182	.182	.182	.364	-0.5
L. Thomas CF	3	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	.219	.263	.301	.564	0.5
Total	29	1	4	1	1	1	5	6	-	-	-	-	-

HITTERS	AB
C. Hernandez 2B	4
J. Soto RF	4
J. Bell 1B	4
N. Cruz DH	3
Y. Hernandez LF	2
K. Ruiz C	3
M. Franco 3B	3
D. Strange-Gordon SS	3
L. Thomas CF	3
Total	29

HR - M. Canha (2)
RBI - M. Canha 3 (12), T. Nido (5)
2-Out RBI - M. Canha 2 (2), T. Nido
Runners left in scoring position, 2-Out - S. Marte, J. Davis 2 (2)

2B - J. Soto (6)
HR - J. Soto (8)
RBI - J. Soto (11)
2-Out RBI - J. Soto

Outfield Assist - S. Marte
DP - (Lindor-McNeil-Alonso)

PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA	WHIP	FPTS
T. Walker (W, 1-0)	7.0	3	0	0	1	1	0	3.00	1.06	27.5
S. Lugo (H, 5)	1.0	0	0	0	0	2	0	2.92	1.22	4.0
E. Diaz	1.0	1	1	1	0	2	1	1.93	0.86	2.0
Total	9.0	4	1	1	1	5	1	-	-	-

PITCHERS	IP
T. Walker (W, 1-0)	7.0
S. Lugo (H, 5)	1.0
E. Diaz	1.0
Total	9.0

PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA	WHIP	FPTS
J. Adon (L, 1-6)	3.2	3	3	3	5	2	0	7.03	1.72	-5.0
E. Ramirez	1.1	1	0	0	0	1	0	2.08	1.00	3.5
C. Edwards	2.0	0	0	0	0	1	0	9.00	1.33	6.5
K. Finnegan	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4.38	1.22	3.0
S. Cishek	1.0	1	1	1	0	2	1	5.25	1.50	2.0
Total	9.0	5	4	4	5	6	1	-	-	-

PITCHERS	IP
J. Adon (L, 1-6)	3.2
E. Ramirez	1.1
C. Edwards	2.0
K. Finnegan	1.0
S. Cishek	1.0
Total	9.0

Pitches-Strikes - T. Walker 85-56, S. Lugo 11-9, E. Diaz 23-12
Ground Balls-Fly Balls - T. Walker 12-5, S. Lugo 0-1, E. Diaz 0-2
Batters Faced - T. Walker 23, S. Lugo 3, E. Diaz 4

Pitches-Strikes - J. Adon 84-44, E. Ramirez 22-15, C. Edwards 21-16, K. Finnegan 13-10, S. Cishek 18-12
Ground Balls-Fly Balls - J. Adon 6-1, E. Ramirez 2-0, C. Edwards 4-0, K. Finnegan 3-0, S. Cishek 1-1
Batters Faced - J. Adon 18, E. Ramirez 5, C. Edwards 6, K. Finnegan 3, S. Cishek 4

SCORING

ALL PLAYS

1ST INNING
Canha singled to center, Lindor and Nimmo scored, McNeil to third 2 0
4TH INNING
Nido singled to left, Canha scored 3 0
9TH INNING
Canha homered to left center 4 0
Soto homered to center 4 1

1ST INNING
	Canha singled to center, Lindor and Nimmo scored, McNeil to third	2	0

4TH INNING
	Nido singled to left, Canha scored	3	0

9TH INNING
	Canha homered to left center	4	0
	Soto homered to center	4	1

1ST INNING
Mets
J. Adon Pitching:
B. Nimmo: Ball, Ball, Foul, Ball, Foul, Ball, Nimmo walked
S. Marte: Foul, Strike looking, Foul, Ball, Marte lined out to shortstop
F. Lindor: Ball, Foul, Ball, Ball, Foul, Foul, Ball, Lindor walked, Nimmo to second
P. Alonso: Ball, Foul, Ball, Strike swinging, Ball, Strike swinging, Alonso struck out swinging
J. McNeil: Strike looking, Ball, Ball, Ball, Foul, Ball, McNeil walked, Nimmo to third, Lindor to second
M. Canha: Foul, Ball, Canha singled to center, Lindor and Nimmo scored, McNeil to third
J. Davis: Strike swinging, Ball, Canha to second on wild pitch, Ball, Davis grounded out to third
Middle of the 1st (2 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
Nationals
T. Walker Pitching:
C. Hernandez: Ball, Foul, Ball, Strike looking, Strike swinging, Hernandez struck out swinging
J. Soto: Ball, Strike looking, Ball, Strike looking, Soto grounded out to shortstop
J. Bell: Strike looking, Bell singled to left
N. Cruz: Ball, Cruz lined out to left
End of the 1st (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
2ND INNING
Mets
J. Adon Pitching:
L. Guillorme: Ball, Ball, Ball, Ball, Guillorme walked
T. Nido: Strike looking, Ball, Ball, Foul, Strike swinging, Nido struck out swinging
B. Nimmo: Strike looking, Ball, Ball, Ball, Ball, Nimmo walked, Guillorme to second
S. Marte: Strike looking, Ball, Strike swinging, Ball, Marte grounded out to third, Guillorme out at third
Middle of the 2nd (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
Nationals
T. Walker Pitching:
Y. Hernandez: Ball, Ball, Strike swinging, Foul, Hernandez grounded out to second
K. Ruiz: Strike looking, Foul, Ruiz grounded out to third
M. Franco: Ball, Strike looking, Franco fouled out to first
End of the 2nd (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
3RD INNING
Mets
J. Adon Pitching:
F. Lindor: Ball, Lindor flied out to shallow left
P. Alonso: Ball, Strike looking, Foul, Ball, Alonso grounded out to shortstop
J. McNeil: Ball, Foul, McNeil lined out to right
Middle of the 3rd (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
Nationals
T. Walker Pitching:
D. Strange-Gordon: Strike looking, Ball, Ball, Strike looking, Strange-Gordon grounded out to shortstop
L. Thomas: Ball, Thomas flied out to deep center
C. Hernandez: Hernandez grounded out to second
End of the 3rd (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
4TH INNING
Mets
J. Adon Pitching:
M. Canha: Strike looking, Foul, Ball, Foul, Canha reached on an infield single to pitcher
J. Davis: Ball, Strike looking, Foul, Ball, Davis hit by pitch, Canha to second
L. Guillorme: Strike looking, Ball, Strike looking, Ball, Foul, Guillorme grounded out to shortstop, Canha to third, Davis out at second
T. Nido: Strike looking, Foul, Nido singled to left, Canha scored
Erasmo Ramirez relieved Joan Adon
B. Nimmo: Foul, Foul, Nimmo singled to shallow center, Nido to second
S. Marte: Foul, Strike swinging, Ball, Strike swinging, Marte struck out swinging
Middle of the 4th (1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors)
Nationals
T. Walker Pitching:
J. Soto: Ball, Foul, Ball, Foul, Foul, Ball, Soto doubled to deep center
J. Bell: Ball, Foul, Ball, Bell grounded into fielder's choice to right, Soto out at third
N. Cruz: Strike looking, Foul, Ball, Ball, Foul, Ball, Cruz flied out to left
End of the 4th (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
5TH INNING
Mets
E. Ramirez Pitching:
F. Lindor: Ball, Strike looking, Lindor lined out to left
P. Alonso: Strike swinging, Ball, Ball, Foul, Foul, Alonso grounded out to third
J. McNeil: Foul, Foul, Ball, Ball, Ball, McNeil lined out to center
Middle of the 5th (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
Nationals
T. Walker Pitching:
Y. Hernandez: Foul, Strike looking, Ball, Ball, Ball, Foul, Ball, Hernandez walked
K. Ruiz: Ruiz flied out to left
M. Franco: Franco grounded into double play shortstop to second to first, Hernandez out at second
End of the 5th (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
6TH INNING
Mets
Carl Edwards relieved Erasmo Ramirez
M. Canha: Strike swinging, Foul, Canha grounded out to third
J. Davis: Foul, Foul, Ball, Foul, Ball, Ball, Strike swinging, Davis struck out swinging
L. Guillorme: Guillorme grounded out to second
Middle of the 6th (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
Nationals
T. Walker Pitching:
D. Strange-Gordon: Strike swinging, Ball, Strange-Gordon grounded out to pitcher
L. Thomas: Thomas singled to shallow center
C. Hernandez: Ball, Foul, Pickoff attempt, Hernandez lined out to left
J. Soto: Strike looking, Strike swinging, Foul, Foul, Foul, Soto grounded out to pitcher
End of the 6th (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
7TH INNING
Mets
C. Edwards Pitching:
T. Nido: Foul, Nido grounded out to second
B. Nimmo: Nimmo lined out to right
S. Marte: Strike looking, Ball, Strike swinging, Foul, Ball, Foul, Marte grounded out to first
Middle of the 7th (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
Nationals
T. Walker Pitching:
J. Bell: Foul, Foul, Bell grounded out to second
N. Cruz: Strike swinging, Ball, Ball, Cruz flied out to right
Y. Hernandez: Strike looking, Ball, Ball, Strike swinging, Hernandez grounded out to second
End of the 7th (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
8TH INNING
Mets
Kyle Finnegan relieved Carl Edwards
F. Lindor: Foul, Lindor grounded out to shortstop
P. Alonso: Ball, Strike looking, Ball, Strike swinging, Alonso grounded out to shortstop
J. McNeil: Foul, Strike swinging, Ball, Foul, Foul, McNeil grounded out to second
Middle of the 8th (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
Nationals
Seth Lugo relieved Taijuan Walker
K. Ruiz: Ball, Strike looking, Foul, Strike swinging, Ruiz struck out swinging
M. Franco: Ball, Foul, Foul, Franco flied out to left
D. Strange-Gordon: Strike looking, Strike looking, Strike swinging, Strange-Gordon struck out swinging
End of the 8th (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
9TH INNING
Mets
Steve Cishek relieved Kyle Finnegan
M. Canha: Ball, Canha homered to left center
J. Davis: Ball, Foul, Strike looking, Davis grounded out to shortstop
L. Guillorme: Strike looking, Ball, Foul, Ball, Foul, Strike swinging, Guillorme struck out swinging
T. Nido: Ball, Strike looking, Ball, Strike swinging, Foul, Strike looking, Nido struck out looking
Middle of the 9th (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
Nationals
Travis Jankowski in left field
Edwin Diaz relieved Seth Lugo
L. Thomas: Ball, Ball, Strike looking, Ball, Foul, Strike swinging, Thomas struck out swinging
C. Hernandez: Ball, Ball, Foul, Strike looking, Ball, Strike swinging, Hernandez struck out swinging
J. Soto: Ball, Foul, Ball, Strike looking, Soto homered to center
J. Bell: Foul, Ball, Strike swinging, Ball, Ball, Bell fouled out to third
End of the 9th (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)

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