Nationals vs. Mets: Henry Rodriguez's ninth-inning meltdown shows how much Washington misses Drew Storen NEW YORK - The firepower in their bullpen makes it easy for the Washington Nationals to envision life without Drew Storen, until the ninth inning arrives and the score is tied. Storen will visit Dr. James Andrews on Tuesday for a second opinion on his elbow, the first step in a process that may leave him sidelined for half the season. The Nationals will continue to survey their options without the man to whom their ninth innings belong. Long after Edwin Jackson left his first start for the Nationals, the New York Mets used a calamitous ninth inning to rally to a 4-3 win at Citi Filed and remain unbeaten. Henry Rodriguez walked the first batter of the inning, melted down trying to field a bunt and then allowed Daniel Murphy a game-winning hit, all with no outs. Rodriguez had overpowered the lone batter he faced in the eighth inning, but then he found out what the Nationals and Storen know: The ninth inning is different. (RAY STUBBLEBINE/REUTERS) - The Mets'Daniel Murphy reacts as his walk-off single drops in to score runner Mike Baxter. (Kathy Willens/Associated Press) - An errant throw from Nationals pitcher Henry Rodriguez bounces behind second baseman Danny Espinosa after Ruben Tejada's ninth-inning bunt. Rodriguez dominated all spring training, harnessing his powerful fastball and physics-defying curveball. In his season debut Saturday, he struck out the final three batters he faced in a three-run game. The question remained: How would Rodriguez handle the tightest of situations? The first evidence arrived Monday night. Rodriguez led off the ninth inning by walking pinch-hitter Mike Baxter on five pitches. Mets Manager Terry Collins called on Ruben Tejada to bunt, and on a 2-2 pitch he pushed one back to Rodriguez. He fielded the ball and looked to second, where he may have had a play. He then turned to first, double-clutched, and fired low. The hesitation allowed Tejada to reach first base at roughly the same time as Rodriguez's low throw to the inside of the base. Tejada elbowed in the head second baseman Danny Espinosa, who was covering first base, and the ball squirted away. Baxter rounded second and reached third by the time Espinosa, gloveless, retrieved the ball in foul ground. When Baxter slipped between third and home, Espinosa fired to third, just late as Baxter scrambled back to the bag. With runners on second and third and no outs, the result became almost formality. Then again, Rodriguez has the kind of stuff that makes three straight strikeouts more than a dream. Not Monday. Murphy flared a soft line drive into shallow right field, a walk-off single. Rodriguez walked off the mound slowly, betraying no emotion. The Nationals entered the game tied because Tom Gorzelanny pitched 22 / 3 scoreless relief innings, with an assist from Rodriguez, who closed out the eighth against Scott Hairston. Rodriguez started Hairston with a ball and then completely overwhelmed him. Hairston swung late at a 97-mph fastball, nearly doubled over taking an 81-mph curveball, fouled away another 97-mph heater and staggered while swinging at another curve. Rodriguez walked calmly walked off the mound having struck out four consecutive hitters. In his first Nationals start, Jackson lasted 78 pitches, forced from the game when Davey Johnson pulled him for a pinch-hitter in the top of the sixth. In five innings, Jackson allowed two walks and four hits, striking out six, inducing a gaggle of swinging strikes with his hard slider and sinking fastballs.