Crews Powers Nationals Past Mets, 7-6, in Back-and-Forth Win
WASHINGTON — The Nationals found just enough against the Mets on Friday.
Washington held off New York 7-6 behind another monster night from Dylan Crews. The 24-year-old right fielder out of LSU produced 52.0 fantasy points, a number that dwarfed everyone else on the field and served as the backbone of a Nationals offense that needed every bit of it in a game that went back and forth into the late innings.
This was the kind of one-run, edge-of-your-seat affair that reminds you why nobody wins the division in April, or in this case, late September — but it also reminds you that in the standings, a win is a win.
Crews set the tone. Whatever exactly the box score shows in terms of hits and runs driven in, a 52.0 fantasy-point performance in a 7-6 game means he was touching the ball at every big moment, and it's not a coincidence Washington found itself with a lead late. He was clearly the story of the game, and it continues an early trend of the young right fielder looking like the engine of this Nationals lineup.
He didn't do it alone. CJ Abrams chipped in 26.5 fantasy points from the shortstop spot, giving Washington the up-the-middle production that so often separates one-run wins from one-run losses. On the mound, starter Andrew Alvarez turned in a solid outing worth 15.7 fantasy points, doing enough to keep New York's lineup honest even as the game turned into a slugfest. James Wood added 15.5 points of his own in right field, and Daylen Lile continued to make his case as a everyday piece with 15.0 points from left. Brady House chipped in 14.0 at third, and Gus Varland was reliable out of the bullpen for 12.3 points in a game where the Nationals needed length and outs when they could get them.
New York didn't go quietly, and this loss will sting more than most given how well a couple of their hitters swung the bats. Bo Bichette was outstanding at third base, racking up 41.0 fantasy points in the losing effort — the kind of night that usually wins games, just not this one. Carson Benge was right there with him, delivering 37.0 points in right field. Juan Soto provided his usual level of danger in the middle of the order with 20.0 points, and Mark Vientos added 16.0 from first base. Starter Justin Hagenman didn't get the results but wasn't the problem either, worth 13.5 points before the bullpen and Washington's lineup took over the storyline.
The bigger issue for the Mets is depth. Beyond Bichette, Benge and Soto, the offense went cold — Brett Baty managed just 8.5 points, Nate Lavender 7.5 out of the bullpen, and shockingly, Francisco Lindor was held to only 7.5 points at shortstop. When your two or three stars have to be historically great just to lose by one, that's a formula that catches up with you over a long season.
For Washington, the encouraging sign isn't just the win — it's the pattern of contributors. Crews looking like a legitimate everyday force in right field and complementary pieces like Wood, Lile and House all contributing in the same game is the kind of balanced production that sustains a team over 162 games rather than just flashes in a single night.
It's early. Nobody is measuring for playoff banners in the last week of September, and both of these teams know a single week doesn't define a season. But momentum matters, and right now it belongs to Washington. The Nationals found a way to win a close one, and if Crews keeps performing like this, the fantasy points will keep piling up right alongside the wins.
For fans building their lineups on JockBroker, Crews looks like a must-roster piece as long as this stretch of form continues.
