Hamels Shuts Down Nats, Spoils Werth's Return
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Cole Hamels pitched a five-hitter, Raul Ibanez doubled twice as he stopped an 0 for 35 slump and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Washington Nationals 4-1 Tuesday night.
Jayson Werth was 0 for 3 with a walk in his first game in Philadelphia since signing a $126 million, seven-year deal with the Nationals. Werth was mostly booed when he came to the plate in the first, but he turned the jeers into cheers when he took off his helmet and tipped it to the crowd.
Hamels (4-1) struck out six and walked one in his eighth career complete game and first since last Aug. 13 at the New York Mets.
Michael Morse homered for the Nationals. Livan Hernandez (3-3) allowed four runs and 10 hits in 6 1-3 innings.
The four-time defending NL East champion Phillies have won nine of 12 and are 19-9 overall.
Hernandez retired his first eight batters until Hamels tripled in the third. Hamels hit a high drive off the scoreboard in right and hustled into third standing with his first career triple.
Jimmy Rollins, back in his customary leadoff spot for the first time this season, followed with a line-drive single to make it 1-0. Rollins tripled in the fifth and scored on Placido Polanco's sacrifice fly.
The 2007 NL MVP finished 2 for 4 with a walk. Rollins batted .271 with only one homer and five RBIs while filling in for the injured Chase Utley in the three-hole. Polanco batted third and Shane Victorino went from leadoff to second.
Morse hit an opposite-field shot to right to cut Washington's deficit to 2-1 in the seventh. It was just the second homer allowed by Hamels this season.
Philadelphia added a couple insurance runs in the bottom half on Ryan Howard's RBI single and Ibanez's RBI double. Ibanez's ground-rule double in the fourth was his first hit since April 18.
Since an awful first start, Hamels has pitched at least seven innings and allowed three runs or fewer in each of his last five starts. The lanky lefty improved to 10-3 against Washington.
Notes: Nationals 3B Ryan Zimmerman had surgery in Philadelphia on Tuesday to repair a tear in his abdominal muscle. Manager Jim Riggleman expects Zimmerman to be at the ballpark to start his rehab on Wednesday. ... Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said Utley soon could be ready to play in extended spring training. Utley has been sidelined all season with a knee injury. ... Hamels' triple was the first by a Phillies pitcher since the late Cory Lidle's at Pittsburgh on April 29, 2006. ... Hernandez threw a curve that was clocked at 59 mph and his fastball topped out at 85. ... A crowd of 45,695 was the 151st straight sellout, including postseason play.
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