NL East worst Nationals edge Phillies to take series
Stone Garrett hit a grand slam, Jeimer Candelario added a solo shot and reliever Kyle Finnegan pitched out of late-inning jams that helped the Washington Nationals beat the Philadelphia Phillies 5-4 on Sunday.
The Nationals took two of three from the defending National League champions and finished a solid 6-3 on a nine-game, 10-day road trip. The worst team in the NL East, they won series against Seattle and San Diego on the trip and have won seven of 11 overall.
They also put a dent in the Phillies' playoff hunt.
The Phillies seemingly picked up where they left off following Saturday's 19-run outburst that was keyed by Kyle Schwarber's grand slam and a Nick Castellanos home run.
Castellanos did it again Sunday when he hit his 12th homer of the year, connecting off Trevor Williams (5-4) into the right-field seats for the 1-0 lead in the first. Bryce Harper singled and J.T. Realmuto then crushed a two-run shot that made it 3-0.
Williams settled down and tossed five innings in a game interrupted by a 23-minute rain delay.
Phillies starter Ranger Suarez (2-3) had loaded the bases on a hit and two walks in the third when Garrett drove the first pitch he saw into the seats for his second career grand slam.
Candelario added a homer, his 11th, in the fifth. Suarez did not return to the mound following the delay in the sixth and left after giving up five runs in 5 1/3 innings.
The Phillies have mixed games with big offensive outbursts with ones in which they continuously fail to get clutch hits late in the game with runners in scoring position. Case in point: the sixth, seventh and eight innings against three Nationals relievers.
Bryson Stott led off the sixth with a double and Alec Bohm walked. But Darick Hall hit into a double play, Brandon Marsh whiffed and the Phillies did not score. Castellanos added a run-scoring double in the seventh — his 27th after he had 26 all of last season — to make it 5-4 and Harper walked. Finnegan escaped when he got Realmuto to ground into an inning-ending double play.
Finnegan was still on the mound in the eighth when he had two on and one out and got Marsh to hit into a 4-6-3 double play.
Hunter Harvey worked the ninth for his eighth save.
MAKING MOVES
The Phillies recalled 1B Hall from Triple-A Lehigh Valley and he batted eighth. They sent infielder Kody Clemens to Triple-A.
Hall made the opening day roster, but his stint was short-lived after he needed surgery on his right thumb. Hall hit nine homers in 41 games last season as a rookie. He went 1 for 4 on Sunday.
Clemens, son of former major leaguer Roger Clemens, hit .230 with four homers in 47 games.
UP NEXT
Bye-bye, Philly. The Phillies have Monday off and then start a six-day Florida road trip that leads into the All-Star break. The Phillies send RHP Aaron Nola (7-5, 4.51 ERA) to the mound Tuesday against the Rays, who have not named a starter. The Phillies don't return home until July 14.
The Nationals head home for four against the Reds. They send RHP Jake Irvin (1-4, 4.72 ERA) to the mound against Cincinnati's Luke Weaver (1-2, 6.96 ERA).
