Just when the Mets needed another hero, Starling Marte stepped to the plate in the 10th inning Monday night and became that guy.
With Francisco Lindor’s lower back still aching — but not as much as the Mets lineup — Marte smacked a walk-off RBI single that gave his team a 2-1 victory over the Nationals at Citi Field.
The Mets, who snapped a two-game skid, have scored only three runs over their last 24 innings since Saturday.
The drought has come with Lindor sidelined for all but one plate appearance during that stretch (he led off Sunday’s game in Philadelphia with a single, and was removed in the second inning with back discomfort).
But the Mets got the most from their six hits on this night and the party was on when Marte, in his second plate appearance of the night, delivered against Jacob Barnes to score the automatic runner.
Jose Iglesias’ RBI single in the eighth tied it 1-1 and brought hope to the small crowd of 21,694 that a comeback win was looming.
Tyrone Taylor’s double started the rally and after Francisco Alvarez’s infield single was overturned into an out, pinch hitter Marte grounded out on reliever Derek Law’s first pitch.
Iglesias followed with a shot off Law’s glove that became an infield RBI single.
The Nationals got the go-ahead run to third base against Edwin Diaz in the ninth inning before the right-hander got Jose Tena to flail at a slider for strike three for the third out.
Sean Manaea gave the Mets a chance with seven strong innings in which he allowed one run on four hits and one walk with six strikeouts.
It was a second straight start that ended in a no-decision for Manaea following superb pitching.
Last Wednesday in Toronto, he allowed only one run over 6 ²/₃ innings, but the Mets were no-hit into the ninth before Lindor homered leading off the inning and the team rallied for a victory.
On this night, Tena’s RBI single in the fourth gave the Nationals a 1-0 lead.
Juan Yepez doubled leading off the inning before Tena delivered with one out — he was caught stealing second base in an Alvarez-Alvarez putout (Francisco to Eddy).
The Mets didn’t get their first baserunner until the fourth on Iglesias’ leadoff single (extending his hitting streak to 10 games).
Pete Alonso reached on an infield single and Brandon Nimmo walked to load the bases, but Mark Vientos was retired on a dribbler toward the third base line that the pitcher Irvin fielded and fired to first for the out.
Irvin celebrated with his head bobbing as he left the field.
The Mets got a defensive gem from the second baseman Alvarez in the third, when he fielded Dylan Crews’ grounder and glove-flipped the ball to Iglesias at second base for a force out.
The Nationals had two singles in the inning, but didn’t score.