Quintana and Nimmo lead the Mets to a 10-0 victory, making them the Nationals’ second consecutive winners

NEW YORK (AP) — Jose Quintana extended his scoreless streak to 22 2/3 innings, the best of his career, and Brandon Nimmo’s three-run home run capped a nine-run fourth-inning average as the surging New York Mets beat the Washington Nationals 10-0 on Wednesday night to complete their three-game sweep.

Luisangel Acuña hit another home run for the Mets (84-68), who finished 16 games above .500 for a season record and tied with Arizona for the second of three NL wild cards – two games ahead of Atlanta for the league’s final playoff spot.

Acuña, Mark Vientos and Starling Marte each scored two runs as the Mets followed up a 10-1 victory on Tuesday night with another sweep of Washington. New York finished the season 11-2 against the Nationals, its best record against an opponent since a 10-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1988.

Quintana (10-9) allowed two hits, walked two and struck out four in seven innings, completing his season dominance of the Nationals, whom he had beaten 21 innings in three starts. He is the first Mets pitcher to throw more than 13 scoreless innings against the Expos/Nationals franchise in a single season.

Quintana has not allowed a run since the third inning against the Chicago White Sox on Aug. 31. His previous career record for a scoreless streak was 20 2/3 innings in 2014.

The veteran left-hander has won four straight games in his last five starts and allowed just one earned run in 32 innings, giving him a 0.28 ERA during that span.

The Mets sent 12 batters to the plate in the fourth inning against DJ Herz (4-8) and Jacob Barnes, playing their strongest inning since a nine-run fourth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays on Sept. 11, 2020. Tyrone Taylor opened the scoring with an RBI double and Vientos – who was stuck in an 0-for-15 and 3-for-39 slump – hit a two-run single before Acuña and Marte had run-scoring hits.

Nimmo followed Marte by hitting his second home run since August 20, a 419-footer into the Nationals’ bullpen in right-center field.

Acuña hit a home run in the eighth inning – his second in two nights. The younger brother of reigning NL MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. has hit 7 of 15 home runs in his first five major league games.

CJ Abrams had two of the Nationals’ three hits. Herz allowed seven runs in 3 1/3 innings.

TRAINING ROOM

Nationals: 2B Luis García Jr. (right wrist) did not play. He left Tuesday’s game in the fourth inning after aggravating a chronic injury. … RHP Trevor Williams (flexor strain) is expected to come off the 60-day injured list and start Friday against the Chicago Cubs. Williams last pitched on May 30.

Mets: SS Francisco Lindor (back soreness) missed his third straight game but played catch and run Wednesday afternoon. … Rookie RHP Christian Scott (right elbow) will undergo Tommy John surgery with an internal splint next week and is likely out until 2026. Scott was 0-3 with a 4.56 ERA in nine starts before being injured in his last start on July 21. … RHP Kodai Senga (left calf), who is eligible to come off the 60-day injured list next Wednesday, plans to pitch for Triple-A Syracuse this weekend and could still pitch as an opener for the Mets during the final five days of the regular season. … RHP Paul Blackburn (spinal leak in back) pitched for the first time since his rehab start on Sept. 3 and hopes to pitch for the Mets next week. … INF Brett Baty (broken left index finger) went 0 for 4 in his first game since Aug. 22 for Syracuse. New York manager Carlos Mendoza said Baty could be a candidate for a recall by the Mets.

Next

Nationals: Continue their final road trip on Thursday when LHP Patrick Corbin (6-13, 5.45 ERA) opens a four-game series against RHP Javier Assad (7-5, 3.27) and the Chicago Cubs.

Mets: RHP Luis Severino (10-6, 3.77 ERA) starts Thursday night in the opener of a crucial four-game series against the NL East-leading Philadelphia Phillies, who counter with former Mets RHP Taijuan Walker (3-6, 6.29).

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb