Fans at Citi Field waited four hours and fourteen minutes for the season to end as the Nationals defeated the Mets 2-1 in 14 innings. Livan Hernandez and Mike Pelfrey both allowed one run, each finishing the season with a 3.66 ERA. Washington finishes with 69 wins, ten more than in 2009. While another last place finish might not excite their fans, ten wins is a nice bump, and the team does appear headed in the right direction.
The Mets now wait for the official word on the status of their field and general managers. The team finishes four games under .500, a game behind the Marlins in fourth place. I suspect we’ll see a very different team on the field in 2011.
Update: I just noticed how the Mets game ended:
Oliver Perez hit Adam Kennedy with a pitch before walking three batters in a row in the 14th inning, and the Washington Nationals beat the New York Mets 2-1 Sunday to avoid a three-game sweep.
Wow. I suspect Perez’s career is over.
A big hand to Livan Hernandez for a tremendous year. Everyone kept waiting for him to fall apart and he never did. I have a feeling he’s the kind of guy who is going to walk around feeling proud that he’s bounced back from a couple of forgettable years.