NEW YORK -- Sean Doolittle stood on the mound, hunched over at the waist, his head down and his hands on his knees. He lingered there for more than a moment, as if still trying to process why Rajai Davis was circling the bases with a huge grin on his face, or why the crowd at Citi Field had erupted in ecstasy.

Washington’s 6-1 loss to the Mets on Wednesday night was perhaps the most excruciating blow in a season already full of painful losses stemming from blown leads. This season-long bullpen nightmare will not end for D.C., and on Wednesday it touched even the most reliable member of the relief corps. With a one-run lead and two outs in the eighth, the Nationals turned to Doolittle, their best reliever and one of the best closers in all of MLB, to record a four-out save. It’s the plan manager Dave Martinez had laid out before the game, and one Doolittle knew was coming.

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And yet, after just 12 pitches, Doolittle was left processing how the Nationals' one-run lead turned into a five-run deficit following a six-run outburst from the Mets, his second blown save of the season punctuated by the three-run homer from Davis.

“It was shocking,” Martinez said. “Good word for it. He’s the best, the best we have, and he comes through in those moments.”

Doolittle has been asked to record more than three outs five times this season, and he hadn't allowed an earned run in any of those outings. But this one unraveled rapidly in a rare instance where he did not have it on the mound.

An errant pitch hit the first batter, Carlos Gomez; it was the first time Doolittle has plunked a batter this season, and it loaded the bases. Juan Lagares then proceeded to empty them with a three-run double to center field that put the Mets ahead, 3-1. After an intentional walk to Wilson Ramos, Doolittle surrendered the three-run homer to Davis, putting the game out of reach.

It all happened so quickly that Doolittle stood at his locker still grappling with it all, his tone hushed and his voice somber.

“I'm really frustrated,” he said. “I'm disgusted with myself. I let the team down and it hurts.”

The loss is especially deflating for the Nationals, who have now dropped four straight games, matching their longest losing streak of the season to fall to a season-worst 11 games under .500. Their 19-30 record is the second worst in the National League, ahead of only the rebuilding Marlins. They lost for the ninth time in 11 tries with Max Scherzer on the mound. And they finished Wednesday closer in the standings to Miami in last place (2.5 games) than to New York in third (4.5 games).

“I tell them all the time: This thing will turn around,” Martinez said. “It’s going to turn around, but we have to believe that it will. We have to will it. It’s time that we just believe that we’re good enough to play here, cause we are. And we’ve got to make it happen. We’ve got to make things happen. And stay strong. Stay together. Stay strong. Pull for your teammates. And this thing will turn around.”

And now Washington needs a win on Thursday to avoid a four-game sweep at the hands of New York, a team that began this series with its own plethora of issues.

The Nationals held a team meeting prior to Wednesday’s game, with the message about sticking together through trying times and resisting the urge to point fingers. It has not been an issue so far, so the team wanted to reiterate that fact as it approaches what could be trying times as this season has rapidly spiraled into disappointment.

"When you face adversity, this is when you reveal yourself,” Scherzer said. “Whether you have the mental fortitude to come back and you can block out all the negativity that's probably going to surround us right now. You've got to come forward to the game with that positive attitude of knowing what you can control and that you have the right mindset that you're going to go out there and compete, and compete at 100 percent.”