Phillies Shut Down Nationals
By Matt Veasey
The Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Washington Nationals for a second straight night in our Nation’s Capital.
At least for the time being, this is starting to get a bit interesting, folks. The Phillies shut down the NL East-leading Washington Nationals by a score of 3-0 last night at Nationals Park. With the win, the Phils have won the series, and will go for a sweep in this afternoon’s finale.
The victory also pushed the Phillies above the .500 mark to a winning record at 11-10, the latest in a season that the club has been above that break-even mark since May 4th, 2014.
As the score would indicate, this one was all about the pitching. Jeremy Hellickson, shelled in his previous two starts, was dominating. He mixed up the sequencing on his pitches, moved the ball all over the place, and struck out a season-high eight batters.
Hellickson (2-1) went seven strong innings, allowing just two hits. Hector Neris followed with a perfect inning for his 5th Hold of the season, and Jeanmar Gomez closed it out with his own perfect inning for his 6th Save.
“[Hellickson] was sharp tonight,” Nationals manager Dusty Baker said per MLB.com’s Bill Ladson. “Some of the guys were complaining about some of the calls. Hellickson was painting tonight, changing speeds. He had a very good night. I don’t want to say it was us because you don’t want to discredit what he did tonight.”
The Nationals pitching wasn’t so bad themselves. Starter Gio Gonzalez allowed just five hits over 6.1 innings, striking out six and walking three. The Phillies got to him for solo runs in both the 6th and 7th innings to break a scoreless tie.
More from That Balls Outta Here
- 11 Free-agent deals the Philadelphia Phillies wish fell through
- Phillies-Mets owners’ rivalry grows after shocking Carlos Correa deal
- Could Rich Hill become ‘Jamie Moyer 2.0’ in Phillies rotation?
- Does Bailey Falter have a future in Phillies’ rotation?
- Prospect Andrew Baker could help Phillies bullpen in 2023
In the top of the 6th, Odubel Herrera led off with a single, moved to 2nd base on a sacrifice bunt, to 3rd on a wild pitch by Gonzalez, and then scored on a fly ball to center off the bat of Darin Ruf.
A similar mini-rally got the Phils another in the top of the 7th inning. Cesar Hernandez and Tyler Goeddel led off with singles, and were sacrificed over to 2nd and 3rd on a bunt by Hellickson. Hernandez then scored when Nats’ 3rd baseman Anthony Rendon made a wild throw home on a fielder’s choice grounder off the bat of Peter Bourjos.
Rather than dribbling and drabbling, the Phillies got their 3rd run via the long ball in the top of the 8th inning. Carlos Ruiz ripped a full-count pitch from Nats’ reliever Sammy Solis over the left field fence for a solo homer, his 3rd of the season.
There was one highlight for the home nine, when right fielder Bryce Harper made a sensational running, sliding grab of a foul fly off the bat of Goeddel to lead off the 5th inning. But at the plate, Harper went 0-2 with two walks as the Phillies largely held him in check for a 2nd straight night.
With the second-worst offensive attack in baseball, how long can the Phillies possibly sustain a winning record? Who knows, likely not for long. But at least for now, fans are not worried. They are simply enjoying what has been the most satisfying stretch of Phillies baseball in the last few years.