ington Nationals in the National League East following an 8-1 loss Monday night.That was big for us to win that game, Washington

WASHINGTON -- Time is running out for the New York Mets, who fell 10 games behind the first-place Washington Nationals in the National League East following an 8-1 loss Monday night.That was big for us to win that game, Washington manager Dusty Baker said.New York (76-68) is very much in the NL wild-card hunt, and that is one reason manager Terry Collins didnt have much patience with starting pitcher Rafael Montero, who walked two with the bases loaded in the first inning and gave up six runs overall before he was lifted in the second.Tonight was certainly a downer, Collins said.The Mets are still 16-6 in the past 22 games, and they maintain a half-game lead on the St. Louis Cardinals in the battle for the final NL playoff position.They are rising to the challenge, which is evident in how they have played lately, Baker said of the Mets.Collins was asked about the teams recent surge and said it was a testament to the character of every player in the clubhouse.And of course, good pitching helps as well.Our young (players) have stepped up, which is very big for us, Collins said Monday.The teams will meet in the second game of the series Tuesday, when Mets right-hander Noah Syndergaard (13-8, 2.48 ERA) faces Nationals right-hander A.J. Cole (1-2, 4.56 ERA).It will be just the fifth start of the year for Cole and the sixth of his major league career. His only previous appearance against the Mets came on Sept. 2, when he earned the win with six innings of one-run ball at New York.Cole is proving to be a much more mature pitcher than when he made his big league debut in April 2015 against the Braves in Atlanta.In his four starts this year, he has pitched at least five innings each time, and he has not allowed more than four runs in an outing despite facing challenging road assignments such as in tiny Camden Yards against the Baltimore Orioles and Citi Field against the Mets earlier this month.Syndergaard is the same age as Cole, 24, but he is already an established major-leaguer in his second season.He gave up four walks and six hits in five scoreless innings in his last start, a 6-3 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday. The hard-throwing right-hander has given up three runs in his past 27 innings.Syndergaard is 2/3 with a 3.02 ERA in seven career starts against the Nationals with 47 strikeouts and 13 walks. He lost to Cole and the Nationals 4-1 on Sept. 2, when he gave up two runs in seven innings.Several Washington hitters have fared well against Syndergaard.Ben Revere is hitting .364 in 11 at-bats against him, Wilson Ramos is at .333 in 12 trips, and Anthony Rendon and Bryce Harper are both hitting .313 in 16 at-bats against the Tuesday starter.A few Washington veterans have struggled against Syndergaard. Danny Espinosa is batting .167 in 12 at-bats, Jayson Werth is hitting .143 in 14 trips and Ryan Zimmerman is batting .125 in eight at-bats. Zimmerman has been in a slump for nearly a month, as was Ramos before he went 1-for-2 with two walks and two RBI on Monday.Following Syndergaards start, Robert Gsellman will pitch the series finale Wednesday at Washington against Tanner Roark. New York will start Bartolo Colon and Seth Lugo in the first two games of a weekend series at Minnesota. Beyond that, Collins said Montero would not remain in the rotation after his Monday outing.Who could take his place?Anybody, Collins said. Wholesale Air Max 1 UK Online .Y. -- Marcell Dareus and the Buffalo Bills defence made life miserable for Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco. Cheap Authentic Air Max 1 UK . -- Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Alrdridge were again the go-to duo for the Trail Blazers against the Kings. http://www.airmax1saleuk.com/ .B. -- The Baie-Comeau Drakkar took over sole possession of first place atop the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League on Thursday with their sixth straight win. Air Max 1 UK . The return match will take place next Wednesday. Udinese leads Fiorentina 2-1 in the other semifinal. Napoli staged a second-half comeback from two goals down after Gervinhos opener and a stunning strike from Kevin Strootman. Cheap Air Max UK . -- Arizona raced out to a big lead and did not back off, hitting the accelerator instead.BASTAD, Sweden -- Arantxa Parra Santonja of Spain reached the quarterfinals of the Swedish Open by beating third-seeded Klara Zakopalova of the Czech Republic 6-3, 6-1 Wednesday. Parra Santonja broke Zakopalovas serve five times at the clay-court tournament in Bastad on Swedens west coast. Virginie Razzano of France also advanced to the quarterfinals after beating Alexandra Dulgheru of Romania 3-6, 6-0, 6-4.dddddddddddd Also, second-seeded Simona Halep of Romania, who has surged in the rankings after winning three WTA titles in five weeks, easily advanced to the second round by beating Rebecca Peterson of Sweden 6-4, 6-0. ' ' '