The New York Mets took care of business against Washington, then got a big assist from the Los Angeles Dodgers to turn the tables in the NL East.

Brian Schneider homered against his former team and Carlos Delgado also went deep to help the Mets beat the Nationals 9-3 on Thursday night, finishing a three-game sweep.

Hours later on the opposite coast, Hideki Kuroda allowed only two baserunners in seven brilliant innings to help the Dodgers beat Philadelphia 3-1 and complete their first four-game sweep of the Phillies in 46 years.

The Dodgers' sixth straight win over the Phillies kept them tied with Arizona atop the NL West, and dropped Philadelphia one game behind first-place New York in the East.

"At this time of the year, every win is huge — no matter who you play," said Mets manager Jerry Manuel, whose bullpen finally held on when handed a lead late in the game.

The Mets got consistent starting pitching, timely hitting and some consistent bullpen work throughout the series for their second road sweep this season.

Oliver Perez (9-7) handed a 5-3 lead over to the Mets' bullpen in the seventh, and Joe Smith, Duaner Sanchez and Aaron Heilman combined to throw 2 1-3 scoreless innings.

The Mets limited the Nationals to six runs in the three-game series. Washington never led.

"That's been our weakness this year," New York's Carlos Beltran said. "We've not been able to take advantage of teams under .500. ... This time, we really approached them the same way we approached the Phillies and the teams in contention."

Washington starter Collin Balester (3-5) held the Mets hitless in the first three innings, but New York scored five runs in the next three.

"This is the big leagues and guys make adjustments," Nats manager Manny Acta said.