WASHINGTON — As we enter the sultry, endurance-testing days of the long baseball summer, the expansive view beyond the outfield seats at Nationals Park is one of several neighborhood cranes, of structures on the rise or under rehabilitation.
From a distance, it is impossible to tell which is which, and that is the conflicting imagery of the Nationals in a nutshell.
Is Washington still a team on the march to forecast greatness it began at least four years ago, or one already patch-working its way to another October first-round fizzle?
But for context’s sake, at least consider this: As the Mets’ fan base and attendant news media plead, posture and all but petition for the thrifty Wilpons to provide a legitimate run-producing bat to an offense that justifiably offends them, here are the first-place Nationals holding the second-place Mets at arm’s distance while awaiting or hoping for the healthy return of assorted players from the disabled list.