Nationals mount 7-run, walk-off rally to beat Mets in 9th

Sept. 4 (UPI) -- The Washington Nationals trailed 10-4 entering the bottom of the ninth inning, but rallied with a seven-run comeback -- capped off by a walk-off homer -- to beat the New York Mets Tuesday night.

Washington catcher Kurt Suzuki had the last word in the 11-10 victory at Nationals Park, smoking a three-run, 400-foot homer to complete the comeback.

"The game is never over until it's over," Suzuki told MASN in his on-field interview.

"We just try to put good at-bats together and this happens."

The Nationals earned a 1-0 lead on a Juan Soto first-inning double, but would trail for the bulk of the game.

Joe Panik's fourth home run of the season was part of a four-run fourth inning for the Mets. Suzuki plated Soto with an RBI double in the sixth to cut the lead in half, but the Mets would answer again. Jeff McNeil's solo shot gave New York a 5-2 lead entering the bottom of the eighth frame.

Soto hit a two-run homer to cut the Mets' lead to 5-4 before New York put up five runs in the top of the ninth inning, regaining control of the contest.

That's when the Nationals came roaring back. Trea Turner plated Victor Robles on an RBI double for the first run of the rally. Anthony Rendon followed with an RBI single, making the score 10-6, and Ryan Zimmerman added a two-run double to cut the Mets' lead to two.

Mets reliever Edwin Diaz settled in against Suzuki for what would be the final at-bat of the game. He got Suzuki to swing and miss on a slider before pitching three consecutive balls. Suzuki had another swing and miss before fouling off two more pitches. He smacked Diaz's eighth offering of the exchange over the left field fence to win the game for Washington.

Suzuki's walk-off homer had an exit velocity of 102 mph and left the field in 5.2 seconds, according to Statcast.

"The boys fought," Nationals manager Dave Martinez told reporters. "What can you say about these guys? Honestly? All year long, they have been down, down, down and they come right back."

Nationals ace Max Scherzer allowed five hits and four runs in six innings for the start. Mets ace Jacob deGrom allowed eight hits and four runs in seven innings.

Soto was 3-for-4 with three RBIs and three runs scored and Suzuki went 2-for-5 with four RBIs and a run for the Nationals. Pete Alonso went 3-for-5 with two RBIs and two runs scored for the Mets. The star rookie also hit his 44th home run of the season.

The Nationals host the Mets in the final game of the series at 1:05 p.m. EDT Wednesday in Washington, D.C.