Collins: Montero won’t start next turn after rough outing

WASHINGTON — Rafael Montero grabbed a bat, walked up the dugout steps and began a progression of practice swings, whipping the bat in a wild arc across his shoulder. No one stopped him. No one seemed to question it: Montero was going to hit. After that, Montero was going to keep pitching.

This was merely the second inning of the Mets’ 8-1 loss to the Nationals on Monday, but it turned out to be the game’s critical juncture. Even though Montero had walked three batters in the first inning, including two with the bases loaded, the Mets trailed by only a run at that point. Strong pitching in the middle innings could have saved them, or at least given their resurgent offense a chance.

Instead, Montero served up four more runs in the bottom of the second, keying a blowout that ensured the Mets would not put any more ground between them and the Cardinals in the National League Wild Card race.

“It’s pretty frustrating, because he does have good stuff,” manager Terry Collins said. “You can see when he’s actually throwing strikes, there’s not a lot of good swings. But he gets …

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