Coming off a successful weekend in Colorado and a very solid road trip, the Mets (42-24) are flying high and set to host the middling Nationals (30-35) for a three-game series at Citi Field beginning this evening.
Sitting 11.5 games back of the Mets, the Nationals are in third place in the National League East, 7.5 games behind the second-place Phillies and two games ahead of the underwhelming Braves. Their lineup has been below average but respectable with an average of 4.23 runs scored per game, a tick below the major league average of 4.31. And the fact that they’ve managed to stay this close to .500 is somewhat remarkable, as Nationals pitchers have given up 5.02 runs per game, the…
