The good news is that Jesus Flores is feeling much better today, and his MRI this morning revealed only an ankle sprain. He was in the Nationals clubhouse this afternoon with a brace on his ankle, but hopeful that he would be back behind the plate soon. I hope that’s true, but also hope that he takes the time to heal all the way before rushing back.
Perhaps in retaliation for that play at home last night, Odalis hit Chase Utley with a pitch during his first at bat. Was it just an accident? Don Sutton seemed to think so, but I’d like to think that Odalis, as a veteran, was showing Utley just what the Nats thought of him and his play last night. Accident or not, Utley was boo’ed again with fervor at the stadium tonight. Putting Utely on base came back to hurt Odalis in the first inning though, when Ryan Howard hit a home run to put the Phillies up by two.
The Nationals came back when Guzman singled and Zimmerman followed with a double to score Guz. Elijah Dukes was on base again thanks to a walk, when Kory Casto hit a first pitch single to score him. The Phils added another run in the third, thanks to that pesky Utley who tripled after Rollins advanced on a wild pitch.
In the fifth inning, the boys put some pressure on with Bonifacio getting a lead off walk and Guzman following with a single. Guz now has eight consecutive multi-hit games. Zimmerman walked to load the bases with no outs.
Chalrie Manuel pulled his starter Blanton in the middle of the jam after only four plus innings. The Nats tied the game on a Milledge fielders choice. Lastings then followed up with a great slide into Utley at second to break up a double play and give the Nats time to score another run and take the lead. Milledge was wired and told Zimmerman about his slide later in the dugout, “Oh that had to hurt, I got all shin.” Yes, I think its war with Utley and the Phillies!!
Odalis was relieved in the sixth by Marco Estrada due to a high pitch count. Howard promptly hit another homer to plate two and give the Phillies the lead again. Estrada couldn’t keep the ball out of the middle of the strike zone and he was yanked for Colome after facing only three batters. Colome surprisingly threw three pitches and got three fly ball outs.
Mike Hinckley and Steven Shell pitched a scoreless seventh. Hinckley seems to own Utley. So far, we are really impressed with his stuff and hope he continues to do well. Zimmerman hit another home run to deep center field to tie the game.
The Nationals rallied in the eighth when Pete Orr advanced on a wild pitch and Bernadina hit a single after a battle at the plate. Ronnie Belliard had a pinch hit single and the Nats took the lead. Bernadina then stole third base after getting a great jump. Bonifacio walked to load the bases for Cristian Guzman. Guzman launched a ball to the left field wall for his 200th career double and cleared the bases. The Nationals scored four runs in the eighth to lead 9-5.
The Phillies added a couple runs in the ninth after back to back hits from Victorino and Stairs and a sac fly from Utley. It was a nail bitter there at the end, but Hanrahan ended big by striking out Werth to give the Nats a 9-7 victory and a series win over the Phillies.
An 8-1 homestand for the Nationals?! It was an exciting week and the boys are proving that they have some umph left. They are trying to play spoilers once again. By the way, Kristen was on fire tonight also. She called Zimmerman’s homer and Guzman’s RBI double. She’d be great in the booth for a game or two!
The Nationals head to Atlanta and tomorrow will have a rookie battery, Shairon Martis on the mound and Luke Montz behind the plate. Should be an interesting game!
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