Phillies Swept by Nationals
By Matt Veasey
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | |
| Nationals | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Phillies | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
The Philadelphia Phillies dropped the Wednesday night series finale and as a result were swept by the visiting Washington Nationals at Citizens Bank Park.
The Washington Nationals came to Citizens Bank Park this week in first place in the National League East Division by a healthy margin. The Phillies entered the series in 4th place in the same five-team division.
The two teams exited the series in exactly those same two spots in the standings. But after last night’s narrow 2-1 victory which gave the Nats a sweep of the three game series, the difference between the two clubs is obviously far more than three spots in those standings.
With this latest win, the Nats moved to 78-53 on the season, still nine games clear of the 2nd place New York Mets.
The Phillies meanwhile fall to 60-73, their worst mark since June 26th. They have lost five of their last six, and 10 of their last 14 over the last couple of weeks.
“We’re up and down,” Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said per MLB.com contributors. “We have our streaks where we’re hot and cold. Still, if you look at the season-long statistics, we’re still close to the bottom in a lot of categories. So we need to improve in that department.”
Related Story: Phillies Enter September in Poor Shape
The main culprit on this night for the losing Phils was a lack of offensive production. They mustered just two hits against Nationals starter Gio Gonzalez, and then got nothing against a trio of relievers.
The left-handed Gonzalez (10-9) went six innings, allowing just a single earned run on Freddy Galvis‘ 15th home run of the season that tied the game up in the bottom of the 5th inning.
Washington had jumped on top early when ex-Phil Jayson Werth bashed his 20th homer of the year in the top of the 1st inning off Phillies starter Adam Morgan.
More from That Balls Outta Here
- 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
- Bryce Harper’s absence should lead to Phillies lineup tinkering
Morgan (1-9) would settled down and pitch well in this one, going 6.2 innings over which he yielded just two earned runs on three hits while striking out five and walking no one.
After allowing the Werth homer, Morgan allowed just one more baserunner, and that on an error in the top of the 3rd inning, at one point retiring 13 batters in a row.
However, Anthony Rendon finally broke that spell with a two-out double in the top of the 7th inning. When catcher Wilson Ramos followed with an RBI single, the Nats had broken through to take the 2-1 lead, ending Morgan’s night.
The Phillies never really threatened to tie it again. Cesar Hernandez led off the 9th with a walk, but Odubel Herrera then immediately followed by grounding into a doubleplay, effectively killing that final shot.
It was “Zombie Night” at the Phillies game last night, complete with the Phanatic dancing to Michael Jackson‘s “Thriller” with a group of “The Walking Dead” rejects. For much of the night, it appeared that some had slipped into Phillies pinstripes and taken the field as well.
The Phils will now have a rare day off at home on Thursday while awaiting the arrival of the last place Atlanta Braves for a weekend series in South Philly.