At the end of a sweltering afternoon Authentic Antonio Callaway Jersey , Andrew Knapp kept the Philadelphia Phillies on a red-hot streak.
Knapp hit a game-ending pinch-hit homer just inside the right field foul pole in the 13th inning as the Phillies came from behind to beat the Washington Nationals 4-3 Sunday.
”That was cool,” Knapp said. ”That was a huge team win – huge team series.”
The win was the Phillies third in this four-game set with Washington. All the wins have come by one-run margins. Over the past two weekends, Philadelphia has gone 5-2 against the two-time defending National League East champions, increasing their edge on the Nationals to three games for second place in the division.
”It shows we’re here to stay,” Knapp said. ”Obviously, there’s a lot of games left, and we have to keep playing well. But we’re up there with a lot of those teams. This was a huge series win for us, especially coming off the series win in Washington. They wanted to come here and sweep us. For us to take 3 of 4 was cool.”
The Nationals are now 6-15 in their past 21 games dating back to June 8. Washington is six games behind Atlanta for the lead in the NL East.
On Sunday, Washington managed only four hits in eight innings against the Philadelphia bullpen, never moving a baserunner past second base in that stretch while striking out seven times.
”We’ve got to start striking out less, putting the balls in play, driving in runs when we have the ability to drive in runs,” Washington manager Davey Martinez said. ”But it’ll turn. Our offense is good. I know it’s good. And I truly believe that it’ll turn around.”
Knapp ended the game when he turned on a Justin Miller fastball and lofted it into the bleachers in right field. Miller (5-1) gave up the run in 1 1/3 innings of work.
Nick Pivetta (5-7) got the win pitching a scoreless inning. Pivetta- normally a starter- was roughed up for seven runs in 1 2/3 innings of work on Friday night. He entered the game as the final pitcher that Philadelphia had available.
”He wanted the opportunity bad,” Phillies manager Gabe Kapler said. ”I asked him and pushed him to make sure that this is something that he was going to fight for and he did.”
Washington jumped out early, scoring an unearned run in the fourth on an Anthony Rendon sacrifice fly. In the fifth, the lead expanded to 3-0 when Adam Eaton singled to right to score Daniel Murphy and Mark Reynolds.
However, Gio Gonzalez labored in the bottom of the fifth after cruising through the first four innings with only one hit and one walk allowed. He walked three guys in the fifth inning, including Cesar Hernandez with the bases loaded, that put Philadelphia on the board. Rhys Hoskins‘ sacrifice fly to right made it 3-2 then Odubel Herrera singled to score Carlos Santana to tie the game.
GAME NOTES
Knapp became the first Phillie to hit a walk-off Authentic Breeland Speaks Jersey , pinch-hit homer since Cody Asche did it back on Sept. 12, 2015 against the Chicago Cubs. Ryan Howard hit the last walk-off homer for Philadelphia back on April 29, 2016. . The Phillies bullpen posted a 0.60 ERA with 13 strikeouts in 15 innings pitched on Saturday and Sunday. .. Nationals starter Gio Gonzalez has never allowed more than three earned runs in 14 career starts at Citizens Bank Park. He has tossed five or more innings in every start.
TRAINERS ROOM
Philadelphia placed right-handed starting pitcher Vince Velasquez on the 10-day disabled list on Sunday with a right forearm contusion.
Velasquez was hit in the second inning just below the elbow on a liner back up the middle by Washington’s Adam Eaton. Velasquez would eventually record the out by picking the ball up and throwing it lefthanded to first base to get Eaton to end the inning, saving a run from scoring during Philadelphia’s 3-2 victory.
This is the fourth trip to the disabled list for Velasquez in three seasons since Philadelphia acquired him.
In addition to Velasquez’s trip to the disabled list, the Phillies optioned lefthanded reliever Zac Curtis to Triple A Lehigh Valley. They recalled right-handed reliever Jake Thompson and reinstated reliever Pat Neshek from the 10-day disabled list. Neshek, who was signed by the Phillies during the off-season, has been on the disabled list since Opening Day with a forearm injury.
UP NEXT
Nationals: Washington returns home on Monday night to begin a three-game interleague series against the Boston Red Sox. RHP Max Scherzer (10-4, 2.04 ERA) will face former Detroit teammate Rick Porcello in a battle of former Cy Young Award winners.
Phillies: Philadelphia has Monday off, but will begin a brief two-game interleague series at home against the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday night. Zach Eflin (6-2, 3.02 ERA) will get the start against Baltimore’s Alex Cobb.
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Nelson Cruz was suffering from migraines when the Seattle Mariners were in Tampa Bay last weekend. He certainly has been causing headaches for opposing pitchers recently.
Cruz, the Mariners’ designated hitter, has eight home runs in his past 16 games, during which he has raised his average from .220 to .251. He hit three home runs in a three-game sweep of the Los Angeles Angels this week and will set his sights on Boston Red Sox right-hander Rick Porcello when the teams meet Friday night at Safeco Field.
“He’s certainly in a really good groove right now,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “So hopefully we can ride it for as long as we can.”
Cruz, who missed most of spring training with a quadriceps strain, hit home runs in each of the first two games of the season. But when he returned to the dugout after that second homer, he sprained his right ankle on the bottom step as he was about to put his helmet and gear away and was placed on the 10-day disabled list.
He had seven homers in his first 37 games this season before more than doubling that since May 28.
“I think we’ll look up at the end of the year and we’ll get a typical Nelson Cruz year here. He was off to a slow start early, everybody was all, ‘Where is this going?’ But he’s righted the ship Authentic Derrick Nnadi Jersey ,” Servais said.
Cruz downplayed his part in leading the surprising Mariners to near the top of the American League West.
“The pitching is the one that got us here,” Cruz said. “I think we score enough to be able to win most of the games. We just find a way to scratch runs.”
Servais said the key to Cruz’s recent play has been his health. The 37-year-old also was hobbled after being hit by a pitch on the foot May 15.
“He is feeling healthier,” Servais said. “He’s such a big part of our lineup, driving guys in, getting the ball out of the ballpark. We saw it coming at the end of the last homestand. He started coming out of it, hitting those balls hard, hitting balls better.
“He’s getting the ball in the air. His timing is much better, he’s staying behind the ball and he isn’t chasing. He is swinging at strikes. That’s the key for any batter, not just Nelson.”
Porcello (8-3, 3.54 ERA) is 6-5 with a 3.62 ERA in 12 career starts against the Mariners. He has looked much more like the 2016 American League Cy Young Award winner (when he went 22-4) than the pitcher who lost a league-high 17 games last season.
“Two years ago is a long time ago now, it feels like, so it’s hard to compare,” Porcello told MLB.com. “I think we’re doing some things differently than we even did two years ago. So I haven’t really thought about what I was doing then. I know what I’m doing now, and I want to keep that going.”
The Mariners will send left-hander James Paxton (6-1, 3.02) to the mound. Paxton, who hasn’t lost since his first start of the season, is 2-0 with a 0.39 ERA in three career starts against the Red Sox.