With a bases-clearing single, Francisco Lindor leads the Mets to victory over the Nationals

A sloppy game and a sloppy run of games were underway for the Mets.

They had bombed protectively, they had flopped over and again in large spots with their bats and in one occurrence they seemed to intellectually fall flat.

However, Francisco Lindor and Drew Smith’s failure meant that everything was forgiven.

Friday night, in a 3-2 victory at Nationals Park to begin a four-game series, Lindor drove in all of the Mets’ required runs with a bases-clearing single in the sixth inning. Smith recorded his first career save.

In their previous ten games, the otherwise struggling Mets (19-20) have won just three times.

The Nationals, who are 16-22, have been the opposition in the majority of those games.

The Mets scored in only one inning — and on only one swing — subsequent to plating two runs in their beyond two games.

Their anger over hitting isn’t over yet, but maybe Lindor’s moment can be a turning point.

“Every game, to me, from now on I guess it means more,” said Lindor, who drilled the third three-run single in franchise history, matching Tug McGraw (1970) and Edgardo Alfonzo (1997). “We haven’t been playing to the level we want to play.”

In the sixth inning, the Mets were down 2-0, largely due to an error by Lindor and a lack of crucial hits.

The Mets were 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position on the night and on track for another frustrating loss when Lindor came in with the bases loaded in the sixth.

In any case, Lindor turned on a two-out, full-count, inside fastball from Carl Edwards Jr. also, served it into the hole in right-focus field.

Brandon Nimmo, running from a respectable starting point on the pitch, shocked the Nationals and went as far as possible around, drawing a past the point of no return toss from CJ Abrams that empowered Lindor to require second.

“I’ll just trust Joey [Cora] and whatever he sees,” Nimmo said of the forceful third-base mentor.

It was the main raised a ruckus around town gathered with sprinters in scoring position and the main they required due to grip pitching.

Tylor Megill pitched five innings and gave up two runs (one earned) on four hits and four walks in an effort to stay in a rotation that will likely see the return of Max Scherzer and Carlos Carrasco within the next week.

He left with the lead, and the Nationals were no-hit in the final four innings thanks to excellent work from Jeff Brigham, Adam Ottavino, David Robertson, and Smith in the bullpen.

Robertson was extended to 1 ²/₃ innings and strolled two in the 10th, putting the likely winning sudden spike in demand for a respectable starting point.

Smith was called up by manager Buck Showalter, and he struck out Lane Thomas for his first save in five years.

“That’s kind of what you dream of as a kid, coming in,” said Smith, before correcting himself. “Obviously, maybe a clean inning is what I really dream of.”

Physical and other Mets misplays had defined the game prior to Lindor’s swing in the sixth inning.

Before Lindor started, they should have scored a run.

Brett Baty hit a soft roller that Andres Machado fielded with Mark Canha on second and Starling Marte on third and no out.

Marte, going on contact, was tossed out at the plate, while Canha, not running on contact, stayed at second.

Francisco Alvarez, the next batter, grounded out to the right side, scoring Canha if he had advanced to third earlier.

However, Lindor made sure that neither Nimmo’s mental error nor his own physical error mattered once Nimmo started walking.

In the lower part of the fourth, with Alex Approach third and one out, Jake Alu grounded a ball to Lindor, who seemed to need to throw home — yet took his eye off the ball, which looked off his glove and into the outfield.

That made it possible for Call to score, putting Alu on second.

This was the Mets’ luck in the first few innings.

In the first three innings, they had made significant attempts, but seven runners were left on base.