|
 For the Philadelphia Phillies, they're left wallowing in last
place and wondering what's next.
The Nationals (51-42) walked all over the Phillies (42-53) in a 10-3
victory on Sunday at Citizens Bank Park to win two of three games in
Philadelphia and enter the midseason break with a share of first
place in the NL East.
Meanwhile, the Phillies sit in the cellar of the division.
"I think if you would have told us at the beginning of the season,
this is where we'd be at the break, I think everybody would have
felt good about it," Nationals right fielder Jayson Werth said. "We
get four days to rest up. The second half is the best time to play,
so I look forward to that."
 Werth went 2-for-3 with four RBIs and lined a three-run homer to
left field in the first inning to stake Washington to a comfortable
3-0 lead. The right fielder has hit six home runs in his last 10
games after hitting six in his first 80, and also leads the major
leagues with 19 RBIs in July.
The 35-year-old won a World Series in 2008 with the Phillies and has
played in six postseasons. Now, he's ready for another push.
"It's what you play for. You set yourself up in the first half to
give yourself a chance in the second, so I think we've done that,"
Werth said. "We'll see what we've got coming down the stretch and
see what we're made of. It'll be fun. It seems like we're relatively
healthy going into the second half, which is good, so that's really
all you can ask for."
Washington manager Matt Williams knows the importance of Werth, in
all facets.
"He's got experience. He's been in this situation before," Williams
said. "He's got the ability to do a lot of things out there, from
getting on base to hitting balls over the fence, driving runs in.
He's had a really good July. He's a veteran guy, he knows what he's
doing and he can lead this club."
Washington starting pitcher Tanner Roark (8-6) took the early lead
and ran with it, throwing seven innings of one-run ball, while
striking out six and walking none.
 "(That was) momentum for us early with Jayson hitting the homer,"
Williams said. "It set the tone real well for Tanner, too. He
pitched well again for us. It was a great way to end the first half
for sure."
Philadelphia starting pitcher Kyle Kendrick (4-9) fell victim once
again to more first-inning woes. The right-hander gave up the three
runs before recording his first out and allowed five runs total in 5
2/3 innings.
In the process, Kendrick's first-inning ERA on the season ballooned
to 11.37.
"I think it's just quality of pitches. I have to keep working at it.
I will fix it," Kendrick said. "I felt great. I just have to make
the pitches in the first inning. That is what it comes down to."
After Werth's long ball, Kendrick retired 14 straight batters, but
the damage was done.
"It was a tough first inning for us down 3-0 after three batters,"
Philadelphia manager Ryne Sandberg said. "And then we didn't get
anything going on the offensive side of things. It was a tough tone
set for us early on in the game and didn't bounce back from that."
In the top of the sixth inning, the Nationals turned the game upside
down, sending eight batters to the plate and scoring four runs to
snare a 7-0 lead and complete control of the game.
Third baseman Ryan Zimmerman, shortstop Ian Desmond and catcher Jose
Lobaton all knocked in runs in the game-changing frame. Washington
then pushed across three more runs in the final two innings.
[to top of second column]
 |
"Well, I think it's important for us to continue to do things
right," Williams said. "Offensively, create opportunities and
deliver on those opportunities. The bullpen has been good and our
starters are giving us a chance, and that combination works."
Center fielder Denard Span and second baseman Anthony Rendon went a
combined 5-for-10 atop the Nationals' lineup and scored five times.
The Phillies, however, posted five hits altogether. Third baseman
Cody Asche had two of them to go along with an RBI.
After sweeping the NL Central-leading Brewers in four games in
Milwaukee, Philadelphia came home and fell flat, dropping its record
at Citizens Bank Park to 19-29. The team is 10 games back of first
place and could very well likely be shipping away veteran pieces at
the trade deadline to rebuild for the future.
"We've tended to play better at home the last five or six or seven
years," Phillies second baseman Chase Utley said. "For some reason
this year we haven't played as well. That doesn't mean we can't turn
that around, though."
Sandberg was blunt in summing up Philadelphia's first half.
"Not pleased," he said. "Not pleased with the record."
The Nationals feel quite differently.
"We're healthy. It seems like everybody's been down on us this
year," Werth said. "All in all, we've kind of kept our head above
water when we were banged up, and now that we're getting healthy,
our lineup is back, you kind of see what we can do."
NOTES: Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg set his post All-Star break
rotation. RHP A.J. Burnett will open, followed by LHP Cole Hamels,
RHP Kyle Kendrick, LHP Cliff Lee and RHP Roberto Hernandez. Lee
(left elbow strain) will rejoin the Phillies on July 21 against the
San Francisco Giants. ... Nationals manager Matt Williams said RHP
Stephen Strasburg will be the team's starter to open the second
half, followed by LHP Gio Gonzalez and RHP Doug Fister. The team
will see how RHP Jordan Zimmermann (slight biceps strain) feels over
the break and will then make a decision on his status, but a DL
stint doesn't seem likely. ... Nationals RHP Tyler Clippard was
named to the National League All-Star team as a late addition ... SS
Jimmy Rollins and 2B Chase Utley started their 1,150th game together
as a double-play combination for the Phillies, which is most among
all active combos in the major leagues. ... After the All-Star
break, the Nationals open at home against the Milwaukee Brewers,
while the Phillies travel to Atlanta to face the Braves.
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
