Phillies Fall To Nationals 6-1
WASHINGTON (AP) — Wilson Ramos homered and drove in three runs, Ross Ohlendorf pitched five innings in place of Stephen Strasburg, and the Washington Nationals beat the Philadelphia Phillies 6-1 Friday night for their seventh straight victory.
Ian Desmond had two hits and two RBIs, and Ryan Zimmerman (3 for 4) hit a solo homer and scored three runs for Washington, which began play trailing Cincinnati by 5 ½ games for the final NL wild card.
Strasburg was scratched after experiencing forearm tightness during a throwing session Thursday in New York. Ohlendorf (4-0), who recently moved to the bullpen, stepped in and allowed a run on five hits over five innings.
Kyle Kendrick (10-13) was charged with six runs on eight hits.
Washington's Denard Span singled, extending his hitting streak to 24 games.
Manager Davey Johnson said Strasburg will rest for a few days and is slated to start Sept. 19 against Miami.
"It's not down where they did the Tommy John (surgery in 2010)," manager Davey Johnson said before the game. "It's on the soft tissue on the top side of the forearm."
The Nationals have clubbed 15 homers in their last five games. Zimmerman has nine of his 24 home runs in his last 11 games, while Ramos has four in his last six.
Carlos Ruiz and Cody Asche had two hits apiece for Philadelphia, which scored first.
Cesar Hernandez led off the game with a walk. With one out, Chase Utley singled him to third. Ruiz followed with an RBI single, but Ohlendorf struck out Darin Ruf and Asche to end the inning.
Zimmerman singled in the bottom of the first. After Jayson Werth walked, Zimmerman took third on Bryce Harper's fly to right and scored on Desmond's infield single.
Ramos led off the second with his 14th home run on a line drive into the visitor's bullpen.
Zimmerman made it 3-1 when he sent Kendrick's 0-2 sinker into the same bullpen to start the third.
Freddy Galvis led off the Phillies' fourth with a hit to left. Galvis tried for a double and barely beat Harper's throw, but Steve Lombardozzi's tag pushed his hand off the bag and he was called out.
The Nationals chased Kendrick in the fifth. Desmond picked up his second infield single, this time with the bases loaded, to make it 4-1. With two outs and a 3-2 count, Ramos hit a hard grounder off the foot of reliever Luis Garcia. The ball deflected up into the air for an infield single as two runs scored.
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