WASHINGTON — The gamble to give Wilmer Font another shot in this short-handed Mets rotation resembled a sucker’s bet almost from the start Wednesday night.
With Zack Wheeler on full rest for Thursday and Jacob deGrom behind him, manager Mickey Callaway could have deferred Font’s start to Friday against the anemic Marlins. Instead the journeyman right-hander drew a dangerous Nationals lineup, and got blasted.
And an offensive attack that had shown life in recent days went into hiding in a 5-1 loss at Nationals Park that snapped the Mets’ three-game winning streak.
It’s Wheeler who will be asked to deliver the series victory on Thursday, when he faces Anibal Sanchez.