Philadelphia Phillies outclass Washington Nationals 4-1 to complete series sweep - MLB Update
Starter Cliff Lee keeps the batters at bay as the Philadelphia Phillies outclass the Washington Nationals 4-1 at Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the last match of the three game series on August 26, 2012.
Nationals’ offence has declined after outfielder Michael Morse has been injured and some of the players in their line-up are not stepping up on consistent basis. With centre-fielder Bryce Harper and the third baseman Ryan Zimmerman struggling in the last
few games, the overall production has suffered.
Meanwhile, Phillies’ starter Cliff Lee rightly exploited the loop-holes in their offence as he recorded his third win of the season on Sunday. He completed seven innings, leaked seven hits as he gave up one run and struck-out five.
On the other hand, Nationals’ starter Jordan Zimmermann was poor on the mound. Phillies drew three runs from his throws.
Zimmermann threw five innings and realising that he was leaking runs, manager Davey Johnson replaced him with Tom Gorzelanny. However the runs which were allowed by their pitchers were enough to see them lose the game as Washington's offence did not show
resistance to score runs to bridge the deficit.
Meanwhile, Johnson accredits Lee with the bulk of the damage in their defeat.
"They have a real good ballclub and Lee pitched a heck of a game," Johnson said. "He was a complete pitcher."
Zimmermann believes he was terrific in initial few innings. From there onward throwing a quality spell of scoreless innings was the probable reality. However, the few poor throws became his undoing as the batters capitalised on them and struck productive
hits.
"The first four innings were a breeze and then I hit a wall and made a couple bad pitches," Zimmermann said.
Offensively the Phillies relied on their shortstop Jimmy Rollins. In four at-bats, he struck two hits and contributed two RBIs.
The series has proven to be one of the most successful Philadelphia has experienced so far in the season. Beating the National League East Division leaders in three matches is a great achievement. Keeping the momentum intact will determine how long they
can keep winning games.
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