Phillies Lose Home Opener to Nationals, 7-6: Five Observations

Apr 7, 2017; Philadelphia, PA, USA; The Philadelphia Phillies stretch before their home opener against the Washington Nationals at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 7, 2017; Philadelphia, PA, USA; The Philadelphia Phillies stretch before their home opener against the Washington Nationals at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
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Apr 7, 2017; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Phillies center fielder Odubel Herrera (37) hits a single during the fourth inning against the Washington Nationals at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Well, They Did Their Best

You have to give the Phillies at least some credit in the loss. After going down 7-0 thanks to three Washington home runs, it would have been very easy to hang their heads and pencil in another loss. They had to face the dominant Scherzer, who didn’t allow a hit until the fourth and kept Philadelphia scoreless through five.

Thankfully, Philadelphia was finally able to get a run back in the sixth thanks to a double from Cesar Hernandez and a RBI single from Odubel Herrera two batters later.

The Phils then scored three in the seventh thanks to a RBI double from Freddy Galvis and a two-run home run from Aaron Altherr the subsequent at-bat.

In the bottom of the ninth, Cameron Rupp reached base on a single before Galvis cranked a two-run home run of his own to bring the Phillies within one. After cutting Washington’s lead from seven to one, fans and players alike felt like they could tie up the game with one of the best teams in the division, if not the league.

Unfortunately, they were unable to tie the game, but they had several opportunities earlier in the game that could have brought them closer to Washington before the ninth.

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