Phillies Series Preview: at Washington Nationals
By Matt Veasey
FRIDAY: Jeremy Hellickson (4-3, 3.80 ERA) vs Stephen Strasburg (9-0, 2.85 ERA): the Phillies managed to avoid Strasburg in the previous three meetings between these two teams this season, but no such luck this time around. The Nats big righty has simply been unbeatable. He has a 9-0 record, has allowed just 64 hits over 79 innings, and is dominating hitters with a 100/22 K:BB ratio. This is a Cy Young season that Strasburg is putting together, and the normally feeble Phils’ lineup will need some type of fluke to even have a prayer in this opener. Shame of Hellickson, who has not pitched badly. If he somehow comes up with his own absolute gem here, that’s about the Phillies only shot.
SATURDAY: Aaron Nola (5-4, 2.65 ERA) vs Tanner Roark (4-4, 3.21 ERA): this would be the game that the Phillies have a realistic shot to win this weekend, with their all-around best starting pitcher on the mound in Nola. For the Nats, however, Roark already has a pair of excellent outings vs the Phils this season. In those two starts he has gone 14 innings, seven in each, allowing just six hits with a 10/4 K:BB mark. The Phils did beat him back in late April, but it was a game in which he two-hit them, only to have Nola post a shutout.
SUNDAY: Adam Morgan (1-5, 6.70 ERA) vs Joe Ross (5-4, 2.92 ERA): it’s not so much that Ross is unbeatable here, far from it. He has pitched well, allowing just 56 hits over 64.2 innings with a 51/22 K:BB ratio. The problem here for the Phillies is their own starter Morgan, who has been awful of late and inconsistent at best since a late April promotion from AAA. The lefty has allowed 52 hits over 41.2 innings with a 29/10 K:BB. He doesn’t hand out free passes, he just gets clobbered, and that is no good against a powerful offense such as Washington’s.
Next: PHILLIES KEYS TO VICTORY VS NATIONALS