WASHINGTON — Expect this to become the norm between the Mets and Nationals this season.
Two well-armed teams, few rallies and games decided by one big hit and maybe a lucky play.
“Both teams have great pitching staffs, and I think it will be like that most of the time we play them,” Jacob deGrom said Wednesday after the Mets’ 2-1 loss at Nationals Park.
The Nationals delivered their jolt against deGrom in the first inning and milked it to the finish line. Ryan Zimmerman hit a fastball into the left-field seats in the first for two runs before deGrom and Rafael Montero combined to keep the Nationals scoreless for the remainder.
The Mets (1-1) never got the hit they needed to steal a run late. Their closest call came in the eighth, when Lucas Duda hit a line-drive that reliever Blake Treinen snared and turned into an inning-ending double play.
With the Mets behind 2-1 in the seventh, pinch-hitter Kirk Nieuwenhuis walked and stole second with two outs, but reliever Craig Stammen retired Wilmer Flores to strand the tying run.
Zimmerman also made a big defensive play, snagging a deGrom pop-up on a bunt attempt in the second inning. Flores followed with an infield single to load the bases, but Jordan Zimmermann caught Curtis Granderson looking at a questionable strike three to end the inning.
Granderson had started to first base before plate umpire Mike Everitt signaled the punch out. The usually even-keeled Granderson protested the call.
“I thought it was up,” Granderson said. “He said otherwise.”
DeGrom, in his first start since collecting his NL Rookie of the Year hardware, allowed six hits and walked two with six strikeouts over six innings and 94 pitches.
Zimmermann picked up where Max Scherzer left off two days earlier. Scherzer took a no-hitter into the sixth Monday and surrendered three unearned runs on four hits to take the loss.
“Their pitching is so good, and I think our pitching is so good that there’s not going to be a lot of runs scored,” Mets manager Terry Collins said. “You make a mistake like they did the other day and one team capitalized. And today we make one bad pitch and they capitalize on it.”
Montero’s two scoreless frames behind deGrom gave the Mets five shutout innings in relief to start the season.
Montero, who will be tested in high-leverage situations, did his best work against Zimmerman in the seventh. After Bryce Harper was intentionally walked to put runners on first and second, Montero needed just three pitches to strike out Zimmerman and end the inning.
The Mets need Montero given the recent thinning of bullpen arms, which included Jenrry Mejia getting placed on the disabled list Wednesday with right elbow inflammation.
Zimmermann allowed one run allowed on five hits over six innings for the Nationals.
The series concludes Thursday, when Matt Harvey makes his first regular-season start since Aug. 24, 2013. He will face another heralded right-hander who underwent Tommy John surgery in Stephen Strasburg.
Travis d’Arnaud’s run-scoring single in the second had pulled the Mets within 2-1. The hit gave d’Arnaud RBIs in consecutive games — he smashed a run-scoring triple in the Mets’ 3-1 victory in the season opener.
Daniel Murphy and Juan Lagares singled in succession with one out to start the rally before d’Arnaud delivered. After deGrom — batting eighth in the lineup — was retired on the failed bunt attempt, Flores reached on an infield single, but Granderson left all three runners stranded.
“The only thing I wasn’t pleased about was not getting that bunt down,” deGrom said. “That makes a big difference in the game.”