Mets take care of business to end skid

Sickened by what they considered a poorly-timed and embarrassing aberration in their season, the Mets executed a return to normalcy in the nation's capitol on Wednesday night. They finally found a way to stop the bleeding before their lead in the National League East hemorrhaged. The clotting factor was an 8-4 victory against the Nationals that ended the Mets' losing streak at five games and allowed them to ignore the charge of the Phillies for at least one day.

With David Wright driving in three runs and Paul Lo Duca and Luis Castillo two each, the Mets supported Mike Pelfrey in a manner to which he is not accustomed and won for the first time in a long week. Not only did they hit and win, they also produced effective relief pitching that secured Pelfrey's third victory and spared the team's sanity. Continue