Flushing, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - Stephen Strasburg finally found some success on the road as his Washington Nationals continued their dominance of the New York Mets at Citi Field.
Backed by two-run homers from Adam LaRoche and Bryce Harper, Strasburg fired seven sharp innings to lead the Nationals to a three-game series sweep via a 4-1 win -- Washington's 11th straight as the visitor against New York.
Entering Thursday's finale with a troubling 1-8 road record on the season, Strasburg (9-10) held the struggling Mets to one unearned run, three hits and a pair of walks while striking out eight in a strong rebound effort. The heralded righty had allowed seven runs and a career-high four homers in Atlanta six days prior.
"Tonight he had really good fastball command," Nationals manager Matt Williams said of Strasburg. "He pitched well."
The Nationals' 11 straight triumphs at Citi Field set a new franchise record for consecutive road victories against a single opponent. It's also the longest home losing streak to one team in Mets' history.
Both Washington homers came against Dillon Gee (4-5), now winless in six straight starts after issuing four walks over six innings.
"We're a little disappointed the way we played," said Mets manager Terry Collins. "The whole difference is that we can't keep the ball in the park and we can't put any out."
LaRoche quickly staked Strasburg to a 2-0 advantage with a first-inning blast over the wall in left center with Asdrubal Cabrera aboard. It was a four-run cushion three innings later after Harper followed a walk to Ian Desmond with a monstrous shot deep into the home bullpen.
The homers were the sixth and seventh for the Nationals in the series, compared to just one for New York.
Strasburg did his part to help Washington build a comfortable lead by limiting the Mets to just two singles over the first four frames.
New York was able to bring one of those runners home, however, as Daniel Murphy opened the bottom of the fourth with an infield hit and took second when Desmond threw wildly to first on the play. He later stole third and scored on Lucas Duda's sac fly, a deep drive to the center-field track that was hauled in on a running catch from Denard Span.
Eric Young Jr., pinch-hitting for Gee, led off the Mets' half of the sixth with a double in front of a walk to Curtis Granderson. Strasburg got out of the mild jam, though, by getting Murphy to hit into a double play and fanning David Wright.
The Mets never threatened thereafter, with Tyler Clippard tossing a 1-2-3 eighth in relief of Strasburg and Rafael Soriano finishing off the three- hitter with a flawless ninth for his 28th save.
Game Notes
The Nationals' previous club record for consecutive road wins over a team was 10, set by the Montreal Expos over the Chicago Cubs from 1982-83 ... The Mets lost 10 straight tilts to Atlanta at Shea Stadium from June 12, 1991-Sept. 1, 1992 ... Gee is 0-4 with a 5.60 ERA in six starts since besting the Braves on July 9 ... Wright extended his hitting streak to 13 games with a first-inning single ... Desmond ended 2-for-3.
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