Game Recap:
Cliff Lee pitched his first complete game of the season, matching Roy Halladay's effort from the night before as the Phillies took their second straight game from the Washington Nationals.
What went right?
Placido Polanco went 1-4 with an RBI.
Jimmy Rollins was 1-4 and drove in his first run of the season.
Carlos Ruiz was 2-4 with two runs scored and a solo home run.
Wilson Valdez went 1-3 and scored a run.
Cliff Lee was outstanding, pitching a three hit complete game in his third start of the season. He walked just one and struck out 12.
What went wrong?
Ryan Howard was 0-4 with a strikeout.
Ben Francisco went 0-4.
Raul Ibanez also went 0-4 with a strikeout.
The Phillies were no-hit by Jordan Zimmerman until the sixth inning.
Game Analysis:
Sorry about there not being a recap of Roy Halladay's start. Work got in the way again.
You could tell from the way the first inning went that last night;s game between the Phillies and the Nationals was going to be a pitcher's duel. Both Cliff Lee and Jordan Zimmerman had their best stuff going, but in the end, the Phillies made the most of the mistakes that the Nationals made and came out with a 4-0 victory. Cliff Lee pitched a complete game, striking out 12 and allowing only three hits and a walk.
You knew that Lee wouldn't allow himself to have two bad starts in a row. After getting shelled by the Atlanta Braves his last time out, Lee looked more like the ace that the Phils picked up during the offseason than any time this season. Roy Halladay gave up two runs in his first complete game of the season the night before, and Lee did him one better by shutting the Nationals out and giving the Phillies their first back to back complete games since the 1999 season. That's what this rotation can do when it is firing on all cylinders. They can go out there and turn the tide of a series without doing anything at the plate. Joe Blanton got hit around in the first game of this series, but that was it. After that, the Nationals had just two runs and nine hits in the next two games. There's a word for that: dominant.
Of course, Lee had to have his best stuff last night, because he was being matched pitch for pitch by Jordan Zimmerman. The Phillies hit Zimmerman hard last year, but last night, he was excellent, keeping the Phils without a base runner until the sixth inning, when Carlos Ruiz launched a home run into the left field stands for the first run of the game. The second run of the inning came when Shane Victorino scored on an error by Jerry Hairston Jr, and the Phillies would add two more runs in the eighth inning to finish things off.
Last night was a prime example of what the Phillies have been doing at the plate so far this season. Jordan Zimmerman made one really bad pitch last night, and Carlos Ruiz made him pay for his mistake. Jerry Hairston Jr made a bad throw later in the inning, and the Phillies scored on the play. Twice in the sixth inning, the Nationals made a mistake, and each time, the Phillies jumped all over them. That's what this team has been doing so far this year. They've been making other teams pay for their mistakes. They didn't do a lot of that when it mattered last season, and that's why they lost in the NLCS. This year, even without Jayson Werth and Chase Utley, the team is scoring runs and hitting more than they did a season ago. It's because they are taking advantage of every last error, bad pitch and fielding mistep that their opponents are making. That's what possible World Series champions do.
Oh, and the best part about last night? Jayson Werth made the final out of the game and the series by grounding out. It seemed fitting.
Tonight, the Phils come home to face the Florida Marlins. Roy Oswalt (2-0, 2.25 ERA) goes up against Javier Vasquez (1-1, 8.64 ERA).
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