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Daniel Murphy, Joe Ross Lead Washington Nationals To Victory Over Phillies

By Chris Lacey

May 31, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Washington Nationals starting pitcher Joe Ross (41) throws a pitch during the third inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
May 31, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Washington Nationals starting pitcher Joe Ross (41) throws a pitch during the third inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Washington Nationals received a phenomenal start from Joe Ross and a critical hit from Daniel Murphy propelled the team to a 5-1 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.

The Nats jumped out to an early 1-0 lead during the first inning, as Jayson Werth smoked a solo home run to left field against Phillies starter Aaron Nola. This was the second career homer for Werth off Nola and his eighth of the year overall.

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The Nationals had a chance in the second inning to increase their lead with two men on base and less than two outs, but Danny Espinosa grounded out softly, and Ross struck out.

The Phillies tied the game 1-1 in the third inning on an RBI triple by Cesar Hernandez. The Phillies could have scored at least another run in the inning, but Nats manager’ Dusty Baker brought his infield in with less than two outs, and it paid off, as Hernandez was thrown out at home on a fielder’s choice.

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    • Murphy gave the Nationals a 2-1 lead in the sixth inning, as he crushed a solo home run on a 0-2 count to right field. This was the ninth homer of the season for him.

    It wasn’t a surprise that Murphy gave the Nats the lead behind in the count, considering he thrives in this situation, per Mark Zuckerman of MASN.

    Nola was done after six quality innings for the Phillies. The talented right-hander allowed just five hits, issued one walk, yielded two runs and fanned six batters on 96 pitches (64 strikes).

    The Nats didn’t score in the eighth inning, but Murphy did tie the franchise record with an infield single in that frame, according to Zuckerman.

    Ross delivered another dominating performance on the mound. He tossed seven innings, giving up one run, surrendering three hits, striking out five and walking two batters on 103 pitches (67 strikes). This was the second consecutive outing that he pitched at least seven innings and yielded one run.

    Felipe Rivero had a scoreless appearance in the eighth inning with two strikeouts.

    The Nationals got some insurance runs in the ninth inning, as Espinosa hit a two-run home run and Stephen Drew followed with an inside-the-park home run, which gave them a 5-1 lead.

    It was the sixth and third homer of the year for each of them, respectively.

    Jonathan Papelbon preserved the victory for the Nats with a scoreless ninth inning.

    Next Game: The Washington Nationals (32-21) will look to complete a series sweep as Max Scherzer (5-4, 4.05 ERA) will be on the mound for them, and Philadelphia Phillies (26-26) will have Adam Morgan starting (1-3, 6.67 ERA) for them.

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