Phillies Come Back In 9th Against Diamondbacks

GAME RECAP: Phils Stun D-Backs 4-3

The Phillies came from behind to beat the D-backs, 4-3, on Tuesday night at Chase Field, striking for a pair of runs in the ninth inning to win consecutive games for the first time since May 17-18 and clinch their first series victory since then as well. "It's been May since we've done it, I think, and it was good to win, obviously," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "[Starter Jerad] Eickhoff just kept pitching himself in and out of trouble all day and he ended up with a pretty good outing." D-backs closer Brad Ziegler (2-3) blew just his second save opportunity of the year -- both coming in his last three appearances. Pinch-hitter Jimmy Paredes hit a leadoff double, then scored on a single by Andres Blanco. Veteran first baseman Ryan Howard drew a bases-loaded walk with one out for Philadelphia's go-ahead run against Ziegler, his old college teammate from Missouri State University. "I'm sure [Howard] would have preferred to hit a grand slam to win the game, but I'm sure he's happy with getting that run across with a walk," Mackanin said. "He battled." Phillies third baseman Maikel Franco went 2-for-5 with a homer and reliever Hector Neris (2-3) picked up the win. Jeanmar Gomez pitched a scoreless ninth for his 21st save. D-backs third baseman Jake Lamb went 2-for-3, reaching base three times. He gave Arizona a 3-2 lead in the seventh with his team-best 16th homer, after Yasmany Tomas had tied the game the previous inning with a solo blast of his own. Arizona starter Zack Greinke exited with left oblique tightness prior to the third inning. The D-backs' bullpen limited the Phillies to one run over the next six innings until Ziegler's mishaps in the ninth. The D-backs lost their fourth in a row. "It's definitely frustrating, we don't like to lose games at all, period," said Ziegler, whose team fell to 13-27 at home. "We get the idea that we should be better at home than we are and it's tough to explain. Tonight, guys put us in a good position to win, especially with Zack going down early."

PHILS PHACTS:

• Phillies starter Jerad Eickhoff helped his own cause with a single to right field that scored Freddy Galvis in the top of the second inning to give his team a temporary 1-0 lead. The D-backs answered in the bottom of the frame to tie the game at 1. The RBI was the third of the season for Eickhoff.
• Howard's seven-pitch walk with the bases loaded proved to be the difference in the game. The veteran fell behind 1-2 against Ziegler but didn't bite on the reliever's changeups and sinkers out of the zone. "He's been battling and taking better at-bats lately," Blanco said of Howard. "It was not a hit but it counts as a big at-bat."
• "It reminded me of the way we played for the first two months of the season. We stayed in the game and scratched and clawed to just eke out a win. That's the way we did it for two months." - said Mackanin.
• Phillies center fielder Odubel Herrera is among NL leaders in games, four-hit games, singles, infield hits and outfield assists.
• Philadelphia's Peter Bourjos continues to be one of the hottest hitters in baseball, hitting .500 with three doubles, two two triples and six RBIs in his previous 15 games entering play Tuesday.
• Bradley is 3-3 with a 4.50 ERA through eight starts. He was 2-3 with a 5.80 ERA in eight starts last season.

NEXT GAME:

D-backs' starter Archie Bradley will establish a career-high in starts when he takes the mound for the ninth time in the series finale against the Phillies on Wednesday at Chase Field. The Arizona right-hander has been on a roll lately, sporting a 0.82 ERA over his last two outings, including six scoreless innings against the Phillies on June 19. He struck out five in the 85-pitch outing. The Phillies will counter with Zach Eflin, who has a 1.54 ERA in two starts since allowing nine runs in 2 2/3 innings in his big league debut June 14. Eflin allowed two runs on four hits in 5 2/3 innings against Bradley and the D-backs. He struck out three and walked one batter in the 5-1 loss.

PHILS PHACTS:

Potential On Display – There are games when Phillies' third baseman Maikel Franco shows off his potential. There are others when he shows his age. On Tuesday, the 23-year-old did both, picking up a pair of hits -- including a crucial home run -- and striking out twice in his team's 4-3 victory against the D-backs to clinch the series win. Franco, who is hitting .246 with 13 home runs and 41 RBIs, finished 2-for-5. "I'm just trying to get better every day and help my team," Franco said in Spanish. "I'm working on controlling my excitement at home plate and I feel like I'm getting better in that area." It was quite a night for the young infielder. He flied out to center on the first pitch he saw from D-backs starter Zack Greinke in the first inning and later hit a double on the second pitch from reliever Randall Delgado in the third. He also hit a solo home run on the fifth pitch against Delgado in the fifth inning to put the Phillies ahead, 2-1. "He's got a lot of natural ability, obviously," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "He's an aggressive hitter and I love aggressive hitters, but he's a little bit overly aggressive. I think he needs to be a smarter hitter. I'd rather take an aggressive hitter and throttle him back than a guy who is not aggressive and try to get him to be aggressive. That's a great situation to be in." Franco, who leads the team in home runs, RBIs and extra-base hits, struck out swinging on four pitches for the final out of the top of the seventh inning. He worked the count full before striking out with the bases loaded and the game tied at 3 on a ball way outside of the strike zone in the ninth. "He's got a chance to be a real good hitter and hit for power," Mackanin said. "He's got a lot to learn but it's only his first full year in the big leagues. He's going through a learning period." Franco, who made his big league debut in 2014, hit .280 with 14 home runs and 50 RBIs in 2015. He posted a .497 slugging-percentage and an .840 OPS last season. "I feel like I had good game because we won," Franco said. "I helped my team win and winning is the most important thing." 

Representing The Phillies – A pair of teammates at Double-A Reading will represent the Phillies at the 2016 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game on Sunday, July 10 at Petco Park in San Diego. Outfielder Dylan Cozens will suit up for the U.S. roster and right-handed pitcher Ricardo Pinto will do the same for the World team. Pinto and Cozens are the Phillies' Nos. 10 and 22 rated prospects by MLBPipeline.com. "A friend of mine, Pat Kelly, managed [Cozens] in Puerto Rico this past winter and he sent me a text and told me to pay attention to him," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "He said, 'Pete, I don't know if you know this guy Cozens, but he's going to be a stud.' I kind of paid attention to the point where I knew he was in Minor League camp and I requested him when we needed an extra outfielder for a [Spring Training] game just to see him." Mackanin estimates 6-foot-6, 235-pound Cozens hit about 10 home runs during batting practice in Port Charlotte, Fla, that day. The outfielder's power has been on display all season. Cozens hit his 20th home run of the season Monday and has driven in 60 runs for the Fightin Phils. He's also struck out 99 times. "He's really a physical specimen and I know he's got a high ceiling," Mackanin said. Pinto pitched across two levels of Class A ball in 2015 and won the organization's Minor League pitcher of the year honors. He's 3-3 with a 4.32 ERA in 85 1/3 innings for Reading this season. He's struck out 59 and walked 24. Major League Baseball, in conjunction with MLB.com, Baseball America and the 30 Major League Clubs, selected the 25 players on each team. Each Major League organization is represented and players from all full-season Minor Leagues were eligible to be selected.

Flashes Of Brilliance – The Phillies have displayed flashes of dominance at times on the mound this season. They just haven't shown it enough times. On Monday, Phillies' pitchers combined to throw their Major League leading ninth shutout of the season in the 8-0 victory against the D-backs at Chase Field. They threw seven shutouts during the entire 2015 season. "For the first six or seven weeks of the season, after our 0-4 start, our pitching was just fantastic. Everybody did their job and made their pitches and for whatever reason, our pitching was really outstanding," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "When they are good, they are good. The whole name of the game is consistency. Over 162 games, the best teams end up on top because they have their ups and downs, but over the long haul, the better teams play better, hit better and pitch better." What's more, the nine shutouts are the club's most through their its 78 games since 2011 when the staff had nine shutouts in the first 67 games. That season, Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels and Roy Oswalt threw 21 shutouts and the Phillies won a franchise-record 102 games.

Today In Phils History – Fred Fitzsimmons had a lackluster managerial stint with the Phillies going 105-181-2 which is why he was replaced with pitcher/outfielder Ben Chapman on this day in 1945. 11 years later, on the same day that the Phillies signed minor league free agent Art Mahaffey, the Dodgers hit three straight homeruns in the bottom of the 9^th to walk off against the Phillies. 2 years later former Phillie, and St. Louis left fielder, Del Ennis recorded outfield assists on two consecutive plays throwing out 2 advancing baserunners at third base. 2 years later, in 1960, the Phillies tie an MLB record by striking out 24 times in a double header. The following season, Willie Mays hits a walk off homerun in the 10^th for his 3^rd homerun of the game (manager Gene Mauch included several pitchers in the lineup at other positions to hid the identity of Mays’ victim). 10 years later, Tom Seaver records 13 strikeouts while shutting out the Phillies with Willie Montanez being Seaver’s 1000^th career victim. In 1986, Juan Samuel hits his 1^st career grand slam in the top of the 9^th in an 8-7 win over the Cardinals. The following season, Steve Bedrosian (the eventual Cy Young winner for that season) recorded his 12^th consecutive save, surpassing Sparky Lyle’s MLB record. In 2003, Jose Mesa secured his 17^th save of the season and his 105^th for the Phillies setting a new franchise record. And, finally, happy birthday to Sherry Magee who was born on this day in 1904.   

THE BEGINNING:

The Phillies are currently 34-45 this season putting them on pace to beat most preseason predictions. All time, the Phillies are 49-57-2 on this day. I expect the Phillies to finish in the bottom half of the division but not last in the NL East by finishing the season with a 77-85 record.

Phillies Focus On The Draft

GAME RECAP: No Game Yesterday

The Phillies actually got a pretty convenient day off as it allowed them to focus exclusively on the draft for which they held the #1 overall selection.

PHILS PHACTS:

• Expect Phillies first baseman Tommy Joseph to be back in the lineup. Ryan Howard started Tuesday and Wednesday, but Howard went 0-for-3 with three strikeouts Wednesday against the Cubs. Joseph has supplanted Howard as the team's primary first baseman, hitting .311 (19-for-61) with two doubles, five home runs and eight RBIs in 19 games.
• Phillies setup man Hector Neris had a 1.29 ERA through May 30, but he has a 9.82 ERA in his last five appearances.
• Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos falls just short of qualifying for the batting average leaders, but if he did, Ramos would lead all Major League catchers in average (.392), slugging percentage (.544) and RBIs (33) with the fewest strikeouts (21).

NEXT GAME:

Jeremy Hellickson has been the solid veteran the Phillies needed him to be in their rotation this season. He enters Friday night's series opener at Nationals Park at 4-3 with a 3.80 ERA in 12 starts this season. Hellickson is 2-1 with a 2.89 ERA in his previous six starts, which includes a strong performance against the Nats on May 30 at Citizens Bank Park. Hellickson allowed three hits and one run and struck out eight in seven innings in a 4-3 loss. Right-hander Stephen Strasburg (9-0, 2.85) will start for the Nationals, who are coming off a nine-game, 11-day road trip. Strasburg is riding a personal 12-game winning streak dating to 2015, the longest streak in D.C. baseball history since Walter Johnson's 13-game streak from July 15-Sept. 22, 1924.

PHILS PHACTS:

Phillies Put Mickey On A Mantle – Mickey Moniak considers Mickey Mantle his favorite baseball player, but not because they share a name. Moniak, whom the Phillies selected on Thursday with the first overall pick in the 2016 Draft, simply loves the Hall of Fame outfielder. The Phillies hope Moniak will be their next great outfielder. The 6-foot-2, 185-pound left-handed hitter from La Costa Canyon (Calif.) High School is expected to begin that journey shortly. It is likely the Phils and Moniak, 18, reached a verbal agreement shortly before the Draft, which is why Moniak said in a conference call with reporters that he expects to sign "as soon as possible." "I'm just ready to get the professional career started and hopefully get up to Philadelphia as fast as I can," said Moniak, who committed to UCLA along with second-round pick Kevin Gowdy, a right-hander. Moniak's stock started to rise last summer and continued to rise through the spring. He hit .476 with 12 triples, seven home runs, 46 RBIs and a .921 slugging percentage in his senior year. The Phillies scouted Moniak extensively, with everybody from Pat Gillick to Charlie Manuel, two of the club's senior advisors, meeting with him on more than one occasion. More than 20 scouting reports over the past year from the Phillies culminated with Moniak and his family and friends watching the Draft as his aunt's home. The household erupted with cheers as MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred announced Moniak's name live on MLB Network. Moniak's cousin immediately handed him a Phils cap. "The No.1 pick has always been a dream," Moniak said. "Up until the point where the Commissioner said my name, it was all a mystery. When it happened, it was unbelievable." Moniak is most often compared to Marlins outfielder Christian Yelich. He is a talented hitter who possesses gap power and is an above-average runner who has the potential to be a Gold Glove-caliber center fielder. Moniak is not a big guy, so scouts wonder if he will hit for power in the big leagues. Phillies amateur scouting director Johnny Almaraz said he thinks Moniak will hit 15-22 homers per season in the big leagues. "I think you'll have a Gold Glove center fielder who will hit in the middle of the lineup and be a leader on the team," Almaraz said. Moniak said he is committed to putting on more weight. He said doing so helped in the past year; he hit no home runs as a junior before hitting seven as a senior. "He was No. 1 on my list -- he was the best player in the country," Almaraz said. "There was no projection with Mickey Moniak. He possesses the ability that a lot of college players don't possess. He can run. He can throw. He can hit. His abilities are superior, and that's why we took him." Moniak's father, Matt, played college baseball at San Diego State. His grandfather, Bill, played five years in the Minor Leagues and received some hitting instruction from Hall of Fame outfielder Ted Williams. "The main thing he taught me that Ted taught him was mostly about approach, what you're looking to do at the plate," Moniak said of his grandfather. Moniak is the sixth outfielder to be selected first overall since 1986. The previous five are Bryce Harper (2010), Delmon Young ('03), Josh Hamilton (1999), Darin Erstad ('95) and Ken Griffey Jr. ('87). The Phillies selected Pat Burrell with the first overall pick in 1998, although he was officially listed as a third baseman. The Draft continues on Friday with Rounds 3-10. The MLB.com preview show begins at 12:30 p.m. ET, with exclusive coverage of Rounds 3-10 beginning at 1 p.m. ET.

Good Follow Up – It is safe to say the Phillies selected Santa Barbara (Calif.) High School right-hander Kevin Gowdy on Thursday night in the second round (42nd overall) of the 2016 Draft because they expect to sign him. Like No.1 overall pick Mickey Moniak, Gowdy has committed to UCLA. But the Phillies are expected to sign Moniak for less than the $9,015,000 allotted for the top pick, which will give the club more money to pay Gowdy to convince him to skip college. "I think we have a pretty good chance to sign both of these guys," Phillies general manager Matt Klentak said. "But, again, we won't know until there is ink on a piece of paper." MLBPipeline.com ranked Gowdy, 18, as the No. 37 prospect in the Draft. He went 4-1 with a 1.59 ERA with 93 strikeouts and just five walks in 56 2/3 innings. Gowdy's fastball sits in the 90- to 93-mph range, but with his frame, scouts think his velocity will improve. He also has a good breaking ball and a good feel for his changeup. "He's a young right-handed pitcher who has the ability to command the baseball at such a young age," Phillies amateur scouting director Johnny Almaraz said. "He has an above-average fastball and good breaking stuff. I'm a believer you can't teach somebody how to pitch. He's got that innate ability to pitch and get hitters out, and that's what we want in this organization, frontline pitchers." Gowdy was a 2016 Rawlings-Perfect Game First Team All-American and a member of USA Baseball's 18U National team. The Draft continues on Friday with Rounds 3-10. The MLB.com preview show begins at 12:30 p.m. ET, with exclusive coverage of Rounds 3-10 beginning at 1 p.m. ET. The Phillies' first selection will be in the third round (78th overall).

A Little Wager – For a lucky few ballplayers, being selected in the MLB Draft is one of the best moments of their lives. And being selected No. 1 overall, well, that's a dream come true -- a culmination of years and years of hard work, and an introduction into one of baseball's most exclusive fraternities. Just look at the joy on California prep outfielder Mickey Moniak's face when the Phillies selected him with the top pick in the 2016 Draft. It's a moment to savor, to share with those close to you ... a moment to make a bet involving a tattoo on your posterior. When the Phillies made Moniak the top overall pick in the 2016 Draft, there was far more riding on it than just the future of a career and a franchise. According to Moniak, he and his childhood friend Ethan Abrams had made a little wager: If Moniak was drafted in the top 10, Abrams would have to get Moniak's name tattooed on his rear end. And don't worry, Moniak absolutely intends to hold his friend to it. (Although if Abrams is eventually drafted in the first 20 rounds, Moniak has to respond with a tattoo of his own, so maybe don't gloat too much yet, Mickey.)

Today In Phils History – There are some big numbers to consider today. In 1972, Hank Aaron connected off Wayne Twitchell for the 649^th homerun of his career passing Willie Mays for 2^nd all time (he also tied Gil Hodge’s NL record with his 14^th grand slam on the same swing). 2 years later, Mike Schmidt obliterated a pitch which in just about any park would have been a homerun but having hit the speaker hanging from the rook of the Astrodome (117 feet up and 300 feet from home plate) he had to settle for a single as the ball bounced back into play. In 1981, Pete Rose tied Stan Musial’s NL hits record (3,630) with single off Nolan Ryan. And, finally, 2 years ago today Jonathan Papelbon tied Trevor Hoffman as the second fastest closer in major league history to reach 300 career saves in 552 appearances.

THE BEGINNING:

The Phillies are currently 29-31 this season putting them on pace to beat most preseason predictions. The Phillies finished the spring exceeding most expectations compiling a record of 15-11-3 (18-11-3 if you include the exhibition games against Reading and the University of Tampa). All time, the Phillies are 42-53-0 on this day. I expect the Phillies to finish in the bottom half of the division but not last in the NL East by finishing the season with a 77-85 record. Let the rebuild begin!

Verlander Dominates Phillies

GAME RECAP: Tigers Dominate Phillies 3-1

Justin Verlander worked over the Phillies for eight scoreless innings, and Miguel Cabrera doubled in one run and grounded in another -- continuing his offensive awakening in May -- as Detroit captured its eighth win in nine games with a 3-1 win over the Phillies on Tuesday night at Comerica Park. The victory moved Detroit (23-22) over .500 for the first time since May 5. Cabrera's first-inning double to the fence in left-center field scored Cameron Maybin, who took over the leadoff spot with Ian Kinsler out of the lineup, for a 1-0 lead. Cabrera padded the lead with runners on second and third in the sixth, scoring Maybin on a groundout to third before Victor Martinez singled home J.D. Martinez. That was plenty for Verlander, who didn't allow a runner in scoring position after the opening inning. His 10 strikeouts marked his second consecutive game in double digits, his first such streak since 2013. "Pretty much the same as what we've seen the last four starts," Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said. "His fastball's really working for him. He's getting swings and misses on it. He's mixing in his other stuff. His slider was really good, a hard slider tonight, borderline cutter at times. But he was outstanding." Francisco Rodriguez allowed a run in the ninth but closed out the win for his 400th career save.

PHILS PHACTS:

• After giving up the Cabrera double, Jeremy Hellickson faced one over the minimum number of batters from that point through the end of the fifth inning. He had six strikeouts during that stretch. The Tigers jumped on him for two runs in the sixth.
• J.D. Martinez's sixth-inning chopper down the third-base line seemed like an easy out until the hop ate up Franco at third and sent the ball down the left-field line. The double put runners on second and third with nobody out for Cabrera and Victor Martinez, who drove in the runs to give Verlander an insurmountable lead. Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said he thought it was a difficult play for Franco, but it could have been a potential double-play ball, or at least keep a runner out of scoring position. "He got to a certain spot, and he stopped," Mackanin said. "He tried to snag it instead of taking one more step toward it. I don't think he could have gotten in front of it, but he could have gone through the ball instead of stopping and trying to snag it."
• Cabrera's swinging strike on Hellickson's first-pitch slider in the third was his first swing and miss since last Wednesday. He had swung 34 times since then with either a ball in play, a foul ball or, in one case, a foul tip. Hellickson later finished off Cabrera for the reigning American League batting champion's first strikeout since May 13.

NEXT GAME:

Aaron Nola starts the series finale on Wednesday at 1:10 p.m. ET. Nola allowed a home run for the first time in more than a month his last start against Atlanta -- a pair of them, actually. Despite that, he still lasted seven innings for the seventh time in nine starts.

PHILS PHACTS:

Solid Outing Despite Loss – Jeremy Hellickson tied a season-long outing Tuesday night in Detroit, going seven innings while allowing three runs on seven hits in a  3-1 Phillies loss to the Tigers. After allowing an RBI double by Miguel Cabrera in the first inning, Hellickson settled into a groove, facing one over the minimum number of batters from that point through the end of the fifth inning. He struck out six batters during that span, not allowing another baserunner to reach scoring position until the sixth. "I thought I was good tonight," Hellickson said. "I just made a mistake to Cabrera that first inning. I was able to settle in a little bit, I got some easy outs and kept the pitch count down." Hellickson gave up two runs in the sixth, but recorded outs on the final five batters he faced. He left the game having thrown 95 pitches, 63 for strikes. Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said he thought Hellickson did a good job facing what he thinks is the most dangerous lineup in baseball. "I won't say it's the best lineup thus far, but I would say the most dangerous," Mackanin said early on Tuesday. "Just look at the numbers, and it can be daunting." Mackanin was happy with limiting the Tigers' offense to three runs. "Last night and tonight, we were in both games, so I'm happy about that," he said. "Not happy about the outcome, but we played them tough, especially with their lineup." Hellickson, who walked one batter on the night, thought the same as his manager. "It's a good lineup, with power, speed, a lot of good averages," he said. "All you can do is try and make pitches, and keep the ball on the ground." Hellickson responded to Cabrera's deep liner in the first inning by striking him out in the third inning, warranting a thumbs up and a helmet bounce from Cabrera. But the Tigers' slugger came back in the sixth with a chopper to third base that was mishandled by Maikel Franco. "Like I said, I made that mistake in the first inning, leaving it right over the middle of the plate," Hellickson said, "and second and third, no outs with him up again, in a 1-0 game, just trying to keep [the baserunners] both out there, but that's tough with him at bat."

Today In Phils History – Something you never want to see happened to Phillies pitcher Bill Hubbell on this day in 1922 as he was struck in the head with a batted ball suffering a skull fracture and concussion as a result. At the end of the decade, in 1929, Homer Peel hit into a triple play against Brooklyn exactly one week after Lefty O’Doul hit into a triple play against the Dodgers. In 1941, Dodger Pete Reiser got his revenge against Phillies pitcher Ike Pearson as he hit an inside the park grand slam in his first plate appearance against the pitcher since he was beaned in April (Note that in 2011 this play was used in the background of a scene from the movie “Captain America”). 10 years later, the Phillies fared better against Willie Mays who went 0-5 in his major league debut. While the Phillies made it all the way to the World Series in 1983, they did have a few rough spots throughout the season one of which was a steak of 42 2/3 innings without scoring a run which ended on this day by a homerun by Gary Matthews. Speaking of homeruns, on this day in 1990, Charlie Hayes hit a 3 run homerun to give the Phillies the win and first place in the standings for the first time since 1984. They fell from the top spot with a loss the following day. 5 years ago there was an interesting bit of history as starting second baseman Wilson Valdez was called on to take the mound in the 19^th inning. He ended up being the first position player to start the game in the field and earn the win on the mound since Babe Ruth 90 years prior. Speaking of pitching, it was on this day 2 years ago (one of the last great moments in a solid career) that the Dodgers’ Josh Beckett no hit the Phillies. And, finally, I would like to wish a happy 50^th birthday to the most intense player in Phillies history, Dave Hollins!

THE BEGINNING:

The Phillies are currently 25-21 this season putting them on pace to beat most preseason predictions. The Phillies finished the spring exceeding most expectations compiling a record of 15-11-3 (18-11-3 if you include the exhibition games against Reading and the University of Tampa). All time, the Phillies are 39-53-0 on this day. I expect the Phillies to finish in the bottom half of the division but not last in the NL East by finishing the season with a 77-85 record. Let the rebuild begin!

Good Start By Harang, Bad Result By Phillies

GAME RECAP: Nationals Beat Phillies 4-1

Bryce Harper continues to be a game-changer for the Nationals as he drove in two runs in a 4-1 victory over the Phillies on Sunday afternoon at Nationals Park. The Nationals improved their record to 26-18. "Being able to get the W was huge," Harper said. "What we did today to get that W -- going on the road right now -- I'm just glad we ended it on a good note in this homestand." Left-hander Gio Gonzalez had a better outing than he did against the Yankees earlier in the week. He picked up his fourth victory of the season by allowing a run in 6 1/3 innings and striking out seven. "I just wanted to keep from [going] up in the strike zone, work my way down in the strike zone," Gonzalez said. "The only time I wanted to get up was when I wanted them to chase out of the strike zone, but again, like I said, [Jose] Lobaton did a great job mixing me up and keeping me in the game." Phillies right-hander Aaron Harang didn't pitch badly, allowing two runs in six innings. But it wasn't enough, as the Phillies saw their record drop to 19-27.

OTHER NOTES FROM THE DAY:

• Harang ran his streak of scoreless innings to 17 before the Nationals pushed a run across in the fourth, moments after Philadelphia took a 1-0 lead in the top of the frame. Washington opened an inning with an extra-base hit three times. Harang avoided damage in the first, but Clint Robinson scored after his fourth inning double and Yunel Escobar came home for a 2-1 lead following a triple in the fifth. Harper's comebacker in the first whacked Harang on his right hip, but he hung around to throw six innings, allowing two runs and seven hits. "I thought Harang did a nice job," Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg said. "It wasn't his best command. ... Limited the damage. He gave us a quality start and did a good job. We just came up short on the offensive side of things."
• Other than Francoeur's two-out, RBI single in the fourth, the Phillies labored at the plate with runners in scoring position, finishing 1-for-9 overall. Batting after Francouer in the fourth, Cesar Hernandez struck out with runners at second and third base. One-out doubles in the fifth, sixth and ninth innings ultimately led nowhere. "We knew we would be up for a challenge coming in here," Harang said. "They've been playing us tough all season. Yeah, it stinks to lose a game like that, but obviously they were just a little bit ahead of us."

NEXT GAME:

Philadelphia's three-city road swing ends with three games in New York. Severino Gonzalez hopes to continue his run of quality outings against the Mets. Gonzalez (2-1, 7.11 ERA) is 2-0 with 2.70 ERA over his last two big league starts, including a 4-2 victory at Colorado on Wednesday. He will face Bartolo Colon (6-3, 4.85) Monday with first pitch set for 1:10 p.m. ET. The Phillies are 1-5 against the Mets this season.

PHILS PHACTS:

Harang Continues Strong Month – Aaron Harang battled more than he dominated in Sunday's series finale against the Washington Nationals. He also never broke, continuing a personal stretch of nothing but quality starts in May. The right-hander allowed two runs and seven hits over six innings. In five starts this month, he's given up five runs over 33 innings. That works out to a microscopic 1.36 ERA. But because the Phillies bats came up short, Harang didn't rack up a victory. In fact, he lost for the second time in four starts. This time he was outdueled by Gio Gonzalez in Philadelphia's 4-1 loss. The Phillies lost two of three in the series. "We knew we would be up for a challenge coming in here," Harang said. "They've been playing us tough all season. Yeah, it stinks to lose a game like that, but obviously they were just a little bit ahead of us." The setback evened Harang record at 4-4. The two runs upped his ERA to 1.93. Harang did not allow an earned run in either of his previous two starts, coming away with a win and a no-decision. He ran his streak of scoreless innings to 17 before the Nationals pushed a run across in the fourth. They also tallied one in the fifth before adding two insurance runs against the Phillies' bullpen in the seventh. It could have been worse. Washington had at least one runner on in each of the first five innings. "I thought Harang did a nice job," Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg said. "It wasn't his best command, but he pitched well with some men on base and left some baserunners out there. Limited the damage. He gave us a quality start and did a good job. We just came up short on the offensive side of things." Washington opened an inning with an extra-base hit three times. Harang avoided damage in the first following Denard Span's leadoff double, though he couldn't totally evade Bryce Harper's comebacker that deflected off the pitcher's glove before striking him in the hip. Harper reached, putting two runners on, but Harang struck out Ryan Zimmerman to end the threat. Harang couldn't escape unscathed in the fourth and fifth. Clint Robinson scored on Jose Lobaton's single after opening the inning with a double. Never a good time to surrender a run, but this one curtailed any possible momentum after the Phillies scored in the top of the inning. Jeff Francouer's RBI single put Philadelphia up 1-0. Harang also avoided a big number in the inning. He immediately walked Danny Espinosa and faced two runners in scoring position following a sacrifice bunt by Gonzalez. Rather than give in, he induced ground-ball outs from Span and Ian Desmond. "I was able to make some big pitches when I really needed to," he noted. Yunel Escobar led off the fifth with a triple. He scored on Harper's RBI grounder for a 2-1 lead. Philadelphia had their own chances, but finished 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position. The Phillies seemingly always have a chance to win with Harang on the mound. "The big thing is trying to give us a chance to win," he said of his approach. "There is only so much I can do. Once I release the ball, it's out of my control unless the ball is hit back to me or I'm in the play somehow."

When A Plan Backfires – Based on one set of numbers, Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg's decision made sense. There were two outs and a runner at third in the seventh. Philadelphia already trailed Washington, 2-1. Left-handed reliever Jake Diekman was ready in the bullpen. He had retired the lefty-swinging batter due up seven of eight times previously. That next batter? He goes by the name of Bryce Harper, otherwise known as the National League leader in home runs. Based on what the entire baseball world witnessed over the last month, find any excuse to avoid pitching to the feared slugger when possible. In this case, Sandberg could have stuck with right-hander Justin De Fratus, who helped put his manager in this spot by surrendering Denard Span's leadoff double. Span took third on a sacrifice bunt, but remained there after De Fratus induced Yunel Escobar's ground out. That left the option of intentionally walking Harper with first base open and having De Fratus face Ryan Zimmerman. "There were some thoughts about all that," Sandberg said postgame. There was surely some intense thinking about Harper's prowess and Diekman's struggles. The reliever allowed at least one run and three total in consecutive appearances earlier in the week at Colorado. "He's our late-inning, left-handed guy," Sandberg stated. Regardless, the manager called for Diekman. With a 1-1 count, the lefty threw a pitch inside as desired. Harper swung, but this time, the ball didn't soar out of the park. Instead, it softly found a patch of grass in left field, allowing Harper to reach and Span to score. Harper drove in two of Washington's runs in their 4-1 win. "It means a lot," Diekman said of Sandberg's continued faith in him during late innings. "You either pitch through it or you're just going to sit down there. It shows he has a lot of confidence in me, which is good. I have a lot of confidence in myself. It just feels like the balls are finding holes right now." Diekman compounded the problem by allowing Harper to score on Ryan Zimmerman's double. His ERA rose to 8.04 after allowing one run and recording only one out. Nevertheless, it was the at-bat with Harper that received primary focus postgame. When the idea of that alternate plan was mentioned, Diekman responded to a reporter, "Do you know my numbers against Harper? 1-for-8, right? I had faith in myself to get him out." The head-to-head numbers provided reason for hope. But things haven't been going Diekman's way of late. "I feel that way," Diekman said of the tough breaks. "You just have to execute pitches better, I guess."

Major Injury Updates In The Minors – Catcher prospect Tommy Joseph remains "sidelined indefinitely," and will be doing vestibular rehabbing for a recent concussion, the Phillies announced on Sunday. The vestibular system, located in the inner ear, helps contribute to one's sense of balance and coordination. Injuries, including multiple concussions, have plagued Joseph, 23, in recent seasons. Acquired in 2012 from San Francisco as part of the return for outfielder Hunter Pence, he played in 63 games combined between 2013-14. Joseph is batting .123 in 20 games with Triple-A Lehigh Valley this season. Right-hander Ethan Martin, who has yet to play in 2015, is scheduled to pitch live batting practice on Monday. The right-hander has been sidelined since April 8 with right shoulder inflammation. Barring any setback, Martin would participate in extended spring training starting on May 30. Martin, a first-round selection by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2008, made 15 appearances including eight starts with the Phillies in 2013, finishing 2-5 with a 6.08 ERA. He pitched four innings for Philadelphia in 2014.

THE BEGINNING:

The Phillies are starting the season as expected and are now near the bottom of the NL east at 19-27. Given the departures, aging stars, injuries, and performance this spring, don’t expect their competitive place in the standings to last. All time, the Phillies are 39-53-0 on this day.