Ten days over the course of a six-month baseball season is not a long time, but in a pennant race it can seem like an eternity. For the Nats, that’s how long it took for them to finally gain a game in the NL East on the New York Mets, who lately seem like they just do not lose.
But on Saturday they did lose, their second game in a row as a matter of fact. And now they face a potential sweep at the hands of the last-place Boston Red Sox. Their loss, combined with the Nats’ 5-1 over the Miami Marlins, cut the division deficit to 5 1/2 games.