Daniel Murphy finally gets it together

WASHINGTON -- Now that he's broken out of his slump, Daniel Murphy's next task will be solving the eternal puzzle of the chicken and the egg.

Murphy went 2-for-5 with an RBI and a stolen base in the Mets' 3-1 victory over the Nationals Thursday at Nationals Park. Afterward, he turned downright philosophical while discussing the nature of slumps.

"I'd say getting hits helps," Murphy said. "But what came first? You get confidence to have hits or you get hits to have confidence? Flip a coin."

Murphy's first hit in 20 at-bats certainly seemed like a confidence-booster. He didn't hit it very well, but the ball nicked off Chien-Ming Wang's glove for an infield single in the fifth. Murphy followed that up by stealing second.

"I didn't exactly hammer it," Murphy said. "But somebody's looking out for me."

In his next at-bat, Murphy singled to drive in David Wright with two outs in the seventh, making it 3-0.

That insurance run loomed large after Frank Francisco allowed a leadoff home run to Ryan Zimmerman in the ninth. Three batters later, Murphy fielded a grounder cleanly at second base and threw to first to end the game. It was another slump-buster for Murphy, who made two errors Wednesday.

"This game has got redeeming qualities," he said. "You can't run from it. You're going to get out there and get more opportunities."

Murphy, who had not had a hit since Sunday's first inning, struck out in each of the previous three games. But manager Terry Collins said Murphy is the kind of hitter you don't worry about when he struggles.

"Dan Murphy grinds it out," Collins said. "Dan Murphy can have a bad at-bat and the next day he'll come up with a big hit. It doesn't have to be a homer. It could just be a single. Might be a double . . . At the end of the season, I'm gonna look up and Dan's gonna be hitting .312, .315. I know that. He knows that."

Murphy, who is hitting .290, deflected that praise toward his teammates.

"It's humbling," he said. "This is one of those seasons that it feels like I've had to scratch and claw for every single hit. Last year it came a bit easier. But it helps you appreciate the times that you do get them. It's a long season. Hopefully I'll get going. I can't say enough about the guys in front of me. They're already going."

It certainly would help the Mets for Murphy to get going this weekend against the Yankees, but he said he wasn't concerned about that.

Said Murphy, "I just didn't want to get swept."