Final Score: Phillies 6, Nationals 0
Behind another excellent pitching performance from ace Aaron Nola, the Phillies defeated the Washington Nationals to secure a series split against their division rivals. They’re now 16-15 on the season and 4-0 against the Nationals.
The game remained scoreless through five and a half as Nola and Nationals starter Patrick Corbin were both throwing gems. The offense broke through with six runs in the fifth and sixth innings combined.
Alec Bohm had a huge day at the plate, going 2-for-4 with a home run, a double and two RBIs. Andrew McCutchen also knocked a three-run homer in the sixth.
Top Plays
- With two on and one out in the top of the second, Nola forced a soft ground ball back to the mound for the third out. Nola ended the inning with just 37 pitches thrown through three. Soto has been on a tear recently. He had 13 hits, including six extra-base hits, in his last 44 plate appearances heading into tonight’s game.
- The Phillies had a similar situation in the bottom half of the second. With McCutchen on third and Hoskins on second, Corbin got Harper and Realmuto to strike out swinging to end the inning.
- Bohm gave the Phillies the lead with a solo shot that landed in the first few rows in left field.
- Realmuto broke out of his woes with runners in scoring position with a single to right field in the same inning Bohm hit the home run. The Phils had a good chance to add on to their 2-0 lead, but a great play by Trea Turner at shortstop negated that chance.
- Bohm added to the lead with a double to right-center field, scoring Gregorius. The play at home ended up being much closer than it should’ve been as Gregorius slipped just after rounding third.
- McCutchen and friends completely blew the game open with a three-run no-doubter of a shot to left field off Kyle Finnegan. The home run was accompanied by a sweet bat flip.
- Héctor Neris came in to relieve Nola, who was cruising albeit at 113 pitches. He allowed two baserunners but stranded them both in what could have been another shaky outing.
Shibe Vintage Sports Starting Pitching Performance
Patrick Corbin: 5 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 2 K, 92 pitches
Corbin’s been excellent against the Phillies in the past and that carried over to tonight. Unfortunately, his teammates were unable to support him on offense as Nola kept them scoreless.
Aaron Nola: 8 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 9 K, 113 pitches
When Nola is on the mound for the Phillies, nothing short of a brilliant outing is what’s expected and that’s exactly what he delivered tonight. Through eight, he struck out nine and only found himself in a bit of trouble way back in the third inning. The Nationals’ one through six hitters combined to go 0-for-17 with two walks.
Phillies Nuggets Player of the Game: Aaron Nola
It was another sequencing masterpiece for Nola and Realmuto. One of the biggest reasons why Nola struggled in certain stretches last season was because he fell behind too often and relied too heavily on his curveball. On Tuesday, Nola mixed all four of his pitches and located all of them with pinpoint precision. Here’s a look at Nola’s mix via Baseball Savant.
Ticket IQ Next Game
- Wednesday, September 2 vs. the Washington Nationals at 7:05 pm
- Citizens Bank Park
- NBC Sports Philadelphia
- Sportsradio 94 WIP
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