Phillies Win Game, Lose Howard
By: Mike Reisman
Well it seems like the Phillies finally found out how to beat the Nationals. It took them long enough. The Phillies went into the series with a very large eight game win streak, but were only able to win one of three games. Well at least they got one.
The Phillies came out of the clubhouse swinging. Though the first two batters of the game, Rollins and Polanco could not reach, Jayson Werth followed them with a double deep into the outfield. After Ryan Howard was hit by a pitch, Ben Francisco hit a single, scoring Werth. While sliding into second on that play, Howard fell to the ground clutching his ankle and had to be helped off the field (but more about that later). The very next at-bat, Dominic Brown singled to right, scoring pinch runner Cody Ransom and increasing the lead to two runs.
Cole Hamels started off the game strong, striking out four in the first three innings. He had some trouble in the 4th inning, allowing a two run double to Ryan Zimmerman, tying the game at two. His other falter came in the 6th inning when Adam Dunn hit a two run shot, putting the Nats ahead, 4-2.
The Phillies responded the very next inning, scoring two runs on a Polanco double and a Ben Francisco fielder's choice. The game remained tied after nine innings and both teams were forced to go into extras. There was no scoring until the top of the 11th, when Placido Polanco struck again with the decisive hit, an RBI single to center. They added to the lead later that inning with a Jayson Werth double, scoring Polanco.
Now it's Lidge time. Problem? Not today. Lidge got the first 1-2-3 save since June 29th. That's a relief for all of us.
Now back to Howard. He was helped off the field in the first with a sprained ankle, however X-Rays were negative so no broken bones. Good news. However the severity of the sprain is not yet known so there is not estimate yet on how long he will be out. Other than the loss of Ryan Howard, today was a great game for the Phillies. Had the team been swept, morale, and momentum would be very low which, for a streaky team like the Phils, could have been very hard to recover from.