Wire Taps: Washington Nationals Can't Stop New York Mets' Streak, Bryce Harper Almost Starts Something.

• Programming Note: Three HR's, two by Wilson Ramos and one by Jayson Werth, weren't enough to stop the streaking New York Mets from winning their fifth straight game last night in the nation's capital. The Nats and Mets are back at it again tonight with NY knuckleballer on the mound in Nats Park tonight against D.C. lefty Tom Gorzelanny. MASN 2 HD, 106.7 the FAN in DC and 1500 WFED will be carrying the game, SNY in New York, and Sirius/XM channel 183 nationwide if you're a subscriber. Who's Watching/Listening/Going To/Following the Nationals?

• LINKS AND LINKS AND...

• NATS BEAT: 

• "'If we had won, I would feel more excited,' said Ramos, who went 3 for 4 with three RBI and two runs." - "Catcher Wilson Ramos delivers at the plate, behind it" - Gene Wang, Nationals Journal - The Washington Post

• "'I feel a couple of days ago I was trying to hit the ball too hard and pull the ball too much,' Ramos said. 'So today I concentrated on hitting the ball to the middle.'" - "Ramos makes case to be regular catcher" - Byron Kerr, MASNSports.com

• "'Right now, there's a few that have dropped in,' he said. 'I still have confidence going out there throwing pitches and throwing strikes. My luck will change a little bit.'" - Doug Slaten - "Mets hang on to beat Nationals" - Mark Zuckerman, CSN Washington

• Your Daily Message From The Dalai Lama On Twitter (@DalaiLama): "Compassion and love are the source of all spiritual qualities: forgiveness, tolerance, all the virtues."

• "Though Zimmermann’s fastball still hit 95 mph and he’d thrown only 73 pitches, manager Jim Riggleman summoned Slaten from the bullpen. The move perplexed Zimmermann." - "Slaten's hanging slider proves costly as Nats fall 6-4 to Mets" - Nathan Fenno, Washington Times

• "'It's a nice thing to see, the relationship developing between those two guys,' Riggleman said. 'But [Ramos is] a special player in his own right.'" - Riggleman on Ramos/Pudge - "New York Mets at Washington Nationals: Ramos a force in Nats' loss to Mets" - Jeff Seidel, MLB.com WSH Recap

• "'I’m not anticipating him starting tomorrow,' Riggleman said. 'There’s nothing set that he’s the guy who goes back either. He may stay, and somebody else might go back.'" - Riggleman on Bernadina - "Roger Bernadina gets some work on first day" - Gene Wang, Nationals Journal - The Washington Post

• "'I feel fine. I'd rather get ground ball outs than swing-and-miss strikeouts and keep the pitch count low,' Zimmermann said. 'I'm happy with ground ball outs.'" - "Nationals' pitching falters in 6-4 loss to Mets" - Ben Goessling, MASNSports.com

• "'Like any competitor, he’s itching to get back there. But I think he realizes it’s an area where you don’t want to mess around.'" - Hairston on Zimmerman - "For Zimmerman, no news is the best news" - Nathan Fenno, Washington Times

• "You may disagree, but Jim Riggleman's reluctance to bench Desmond displays a level of support many other managers wouldn't offer." - "Desmond's valid distraction" - Phil Wood, MASNSports.com

• "Manager Jim Riggleman said Zimmerman did 'some firm tossing' from about 60 feet, and ran at about 50 percent of his full speed." - "Ryan Zimmerman making progress, but will likely need rehab assignment" - Ben Goessling, MASNSports.com

• SHARKNatsTown: 

• "The Shark took over for Mako in left field after a bunt single to start the 9th.  From that point on, the Mets clearly feared hitting the ball in the outfield..." - "The Shark 'Fin'ally Debuts for Nationals" - Sharkadina: Roger Bernadina's Unofficial Blog

• NatsTown: 

• "Did Riggleman consider allowing Zimmermann (1-4, 4.55) to pitch out of his own mess?  No, he did not." - "GAME 22 REVIEW: Nats Follow Familiar Script in 6-4 Loss to Mets" - Dave Nichols, Nats News Network

• "As I've written before, Desmond's 2010 was really disappointing from a developmental perspective. He was every bit as error-prone as he'd been in the minors..." - "Desmond Downer" - Steven, FJB

• "Entering the 2011 season, many felt the Nationals dropped the ball over the winter in a rather public attempt to sure up their starting pitching rotation." - "The Pitching Targets The Nationals Failed To Acquire" - Will Yoder, The Nats Blog

• "Ross Detwiler's breakout 2011 Spring Training couldn't possibly have come sooner." - "Ross Detwiler's Breakout Season?" - Joe Drugan, Capitol Baseball

• "Waiting in ambush along the first baseline was Teddy’s longtime nemesis 'That Cat'..." - Video: "That Cat" returns, takes out Teddy Roosevelt" Presidents Race Fan, Let Teddy Win!

• Nats Minor League Updates: 

• Class-A Hagerstown: VIDEO: "Bryce Harper sparking the first benches-clearing incident of his professional career..." - "Bryce Harper homers, sparks first benches-clearing incident as a pro." - The Nationals Enquirer

• "Wednesday’s News & Notes" - April Whitzman, NationalsProspects.com

• Class-A Hagerstown: "The Nationals' top prospect clubbed a two-out shot to right field in the first inning off West Virginia starter Tyler Waldron..." - "Harper connects again for fourth homer" - Danny Wild, MiLB.com

• Class-A Potomac: "This marks the fifth time the Nationals have been rained out in 2011, and the first postponement for Myrtle." - "P-NATS AND PELICANS RAINED OUT TUESDAY" - Potomac Nationals News

• Double-A Harrisburg: "Erik Davis pitched six shutout innings, earning his first win with the Senators while Josh Johnson led the offense with three hits." - "Erik Davis Earns First Win with 4-1 Victory over Altoona" - Terry Byrom, Harrisburg Senators News

• Double-A Harrisburg: "The Senators prevailed 4-1 over the Altoona Curve as starter Erik Davis was impressive in battling around a couple of walks and hits in every inning but one to throw 6 innings of shutout ball." - "Game 17: Senators 4, Curve 1" - Mick Reinhard, The Sports 'Burger

• Triple-A Syracuse: "Chiefs righthander J.D. Martin was scheduled to pitch Tuesday against Toledo lefty Charlie Furbush. They will battle tomorrow in the first game." - "Chiefs and Mud Hens rained out" - Syracuse Chiefs News

• NL East Updates: 

• Braves: "After a rough loss in thirteen innings the night before, the Braves left no doubt about tonight's game." - "Atlanta Braves Defeat San Diego Padres 8-2 Behind Jair Jurrjens' Complete Game" - mvhsball, Talking Chop

• Phillies: "Jose Contreras, a 39-year-old pitcher with more than plenty of mileage on his right arm and playing the role of trusted closer for the first time in his career, had injured his elbow." - "Phillies Notes: Phillies' Contreras has elbow strain, could be back in three or four weeks" - Matt Gelb, Philadelphia Inquirer 

• Marlins: "Reporting from Miami — Reality has started to impose itself on Don Mattingly." - "Patchwork Dodgers lineup is no match for Marlins in 4-2 loss" - Dylan Hernandez, latimes.com

• "I surely got your attention with that headline — but it’s not as far-fetched as it sounds." - "With Jose Reyes, David Wright, Carlos Beltran, Jason Bay, Ike Davis, NY Mets Have Best Lineup In The National League; Not Phillies, Not Giants, Not Rockies" - Rich Coutinho, CBS New York

• Joe Blogs: "You’ve noticed this, no doubt, but there really are many, many things that we talk and write about in sports that have nothing whatsoever to do with reality." - "Posts Talk and Reality" - Joe Posnanski, SI.com