Washington saw its lead in the division cut to five games ahead of the Atlanta Braves, who played Sunday night in San Francisco.

The Nationals and Phillies have done a sort of “Freaky Friday” switcheroo this year, as the perennially contending Phillies underperformed under the weight of injuries and aging veterans, while the Nationals, routinely near the bottom of the NL East, burst out in 2012 in an early show of what the front office hopes to be a power for years to come. Yet you wouldn’t know any role reversal had happened at all if you had just started paying attention this weekend. The Nationals were carved up by Philadelphia’s starting pitching, while the Phillies hitters took advantage of the one shaky inning Washington’s starters were generally giving them.

Lee was the latest Philadelphia hurler to climb into the not-so-way-back machine. Somehow entering the game having earned only two wins this season, the 33-year-old left-hander looked to be in his Cy Young prime. One night after Roy Halladay shredded the strike zone, throwing 86 strikes of his 105 pitches, Lee (3-7) was equally as precise, hurling 77 strikes in 99 pitches while making splinters of Washington bats all afternoon.

Jordan Zimmermann began his afternoon trading zeroes with Lee in what appeared to be another nice pitcher’s duel and was getting plenty of help from his defense. Steve Lombardozzi and Jayson Werthboth made nice plays to help Zimmermann (9-8) preserve his end of the scoreless draw, but things came unraveled quickly in the fifth.

Kevin Frandsen led off with a single and went to second on a passed ball by Nationals catcher Jesus Flores. Bryce Harper then saved a run, at least momentarily, with a stellar diving catch in center field to rob Erik Kratz. But Lee, of all people, drove a double over Harper’s head to plate Frandsen and open the scoring. Adding insult to injury, Jimmy Rollins then deposited a 3-1 pitch into the right-field stands for a two-run homer and a 3-0 Philly lead.

Zimmermann was done after five innings, but the Phillies were not. Laynce Nix greeted Tom Gorzelanny rudely with a line-drive home run to right that extended the Philadelphia advantage to 4-0, more than enough the way Lee was throwing, although the Nationals could have made things interesting in the seventh if not for a quirky bounce.

Werth led the inning off with a dribbler back to Lee that the pitcher threw away, putting Werth on second. The next batter, Adam LaRoche, hit a high fly ball to right that appeared to leave the yard, but instead bounced off the top rail in front of the bleachers. Despite the umpires signalling “in play,” both Werth and LaRoche went into home run trots. But instead of a 4-2 game, Werth had to stop at third and LaRoche got caught in a rundown for the inning’s first out. Tyler Moore then underscored the gaffe with his second double of the game, which did score Werth but could have been much more of a hammer blow to Lee.

As has been the case throughout the weekend, the Phillies bullpen, which had not been a strong suit of the club, allowed Washington nothing, with Josh Lindblom throwing 1 2/3 innings of perfect relief Sunday to earn his first career save.

Champ of the Game: Cliff Lee. Lee picked up where Halladay left off Saturday night, allowing seven hits and one run over his seven innings, striking out five while walking none, while also contributing the game’s first RBI. For the Nationals, Tyler Moore gets the nod from a slim list of candidates, the rookie making the most of his increased playing time with two doubles and Washington’s only ribbie.

Chump of the Game: Danny Espinosa‘s 0-for-4 outing in the leadoff spot could have been predicted from the game’s first at-bat, as he went down swinging at three pitches by Lee and looked terrible doing it. For the Phillies, Erik Kratz might have had an RBI if Harper hadn’t robbed him of that hit in the fifth, but instead he just went 0-for-3.

Next Game: After an unscheduled extra night in Philadelphia, the Nationals will travel to Miami hoping any and all tropical disasters have long since passed. The Nats and Marlins start a quick two-game set on Tuesday night at 7:10 ET at Marlins Park. Stephen Strasburg (15-5, 2.85 ERA) will take the mound for Washington against the Fish and Ricky Nolasco (9-12, 5.07)

The Phillies traded both Shane Victorino and Hunter Pence before the game. Ryan Zimmerman and Adam LaRoche did not play for the Nats, both players out due to back soreness. Chad Tracy rejoined the Nats from his rehab assignment, and Corey Brown was sent back to Syracuse.

Strasburg struggled with a tight strike zone by the umpire and lack of control of his breaking ball. The Phillies hitters were aware that Stephen has been relying mostly on his fastball lately, and were sitting on that pitch during most of their at bats. When Strasburg did throw a different pitch, it was not usually close to the zone and fooling no one. Strasburg gave up six runs in four innings of work. Kevin Frandsen, added to the Philadelphia roster today, hit a two run homer off Strasburg in the second inning on a first pitch fastball. Juan Pierre added a run in the third inning after a single. He stole second, and scored when while stealing third, Flores threw the ball past Mark DeRosa at third for an error.

Strasburg ran into more trouble in the fourth inning. John Mayberry doubled, and was driven in on a single by Cliff Lee. Lee then stole second. Jimmy Rollins then hit an inside the park home run. The ball was hit to deep right field and bounced off the top of the fence. Bryce Harper tried to catch the ball and crashed into the fence. Roger Bernadina failed to back up the play, and by the time Harper recovered, got to the ball and threw it home, Rollins had crossed the plate.

Tom Gorzelanny replaced Strasburg in the fifth inning, and pitched three innings of scoreless relief, only throwing thirty-six pitches in the process. He probably could have gone longer, but his place in the batting order came up in the bottom of the seventh and Davey Johnson elected to pinch hit Tracy for Gorzelanny. Henry Rodriguez pitched a scoreless eighth inning, but ran into trouble in the ninth inning, allowing a single to Pierre and then walking Chase Utley. He got Ryan Howard to ground out, but both runners moved up. Johnson elected to go with Drew Storen to get the final two outs. Storen got Carlos Ruiz to ground out, but Pierre scored from third. Laynce Nix scored Utley on a single, and John Mayberry grounded out to end the inning.

The Nats went 1-5 with runners in scoring position. The Phillies went 4-11. The Nationals recent ability to get timely hits deserted them for this game, probably due to the solid seven innings pitched by Lee.

Champ of the Game: Tom Gorzelanny pitched three shutout innings in relief of Strasburg’s early exit. He gave the Nats a chance to get back into the game and saved the bullpen. For the Phillies, Juan Pierre went 3-5, and scored a run with effective base stealing.

Chump of the Game: For the Nationals, there are plenty of candidates. DeRosa went 0-4 with four strikeouts. Harper, Espinosa, and Moore all went 0-4 and all three made outs in the bottom of the third when Strasburg lead off with a single and Lombardozzi followed with another single. The Nats went from two on, nobody out to out of the inning after Harper, Espinosa and Moore all failed to deliver. Collectively they are the Chumps of the Game for the Nats.

Unsung Hero: Steve Lombardozzi. He drew a walk in his first at bat against Lee, and had a hit off him also. He made several good plays at second. He had a solid day.

Next Game: Wednesday August 1st is another game for the Nats against the Phillies at Nationals Park. Edwin Jackson (6-6, 3.52 ERA) goes against Vance Worley (5-6, 3.88 ERA).

Heading into the season Philadelphia was the easy favorite in the NL East, further exemplifying just how disappointing 2012 has been thus far.

Catcher Carlos Ruiz has been tearing the cover off the ball at the plate, one of the lone bright spots to Philadelphia's season thus far. (Image Credit: Howard Smith-US PRESSWIRE)

Catcher Carlos Ruiz has been the lone bright spot in the lineup, batting .350/.412/.584 with 13 HR and 46 RBI through 289 plate appearances on the year. The should-have-been-starter in the All Star Game has been enjoying a career year despite seeing little help in the lineup around him. Right fielder Hunter Pence has also been a bright spot, hitting .285/.352/.482 in 378 plate appearances while pacing the team with 16 HR and 50 RBI.

Injuries have just one of the problems facing the five-time defending division champions. Up until just a few weeks ago the team had been without two of their most lethal offensive weapons, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard.

Utley returned to the lineup on June 27th with a home run in his first at bat against Pittsburgh’s James McDonald, though the Phillies still managed to lose the game 11-7. He’s managed to bat just .235/.278/.412 over 36 plate appearances (10 games) since rejoining the team, having missed most of the first half of the season due to soreness in his knee. Utley’s dealt with chronic leg problems (mostly knee and hip) throughout much of his career, but this was the first time in memory that he missed such a significant amount of time without undergoing surgery first.

The second baseman’s return was vital, given the lack of production the team had been receiving from the position. Rookie Freddy Galvis played well enough in Spring Training to receive the bulk of the at bats in Utley’s place, but he too was lost in early June to a pars fracture in his lower back. To further complicate things, roughly a week later it was announced that Galvis had received a 50-game suspension for testing positive for a performance enhancing substance. Fortunately for the Phillies, a loop hole will allow the 22 year old to serve his suspension while on the disabled list but given the nature of his injury, it’s uncertain how long he will be out. Galvis had batted .226/.254/.363 with 3 HR and 24 RBI in 200 plate appearances (58 games) prior to the injury.

Howard, meanwhile, has been on the shelf since suffering a torn achilles on the final out of Philadelphia’s 2011 season. At the time it was estimated that he’d miss at least the first three months of the season, assuming there were no setbacks in his recovery. The timing couldn’t have been worse, as this year coincides with the beginning of a massive contract extension the Phillies had given him well before he’d reach free agency – not to mention the fact that the injury came during the playoffs, as the team was eliminated by the eventual World Series Champion Cardinals.

Howard has appeared in just two games on the season since re-joining the Phillies, picking up a pair of hits in 8 plate appearances. In his absence, most of the first base at bats went to Ty Wigginton and John Mayberry. The veteran Wigginton has batted .247/.318/.398 on the year, with 9 HR and 35 RBI over 261 plate appearances. He’s primarily been a role player over his 11 year career, a role that seems more appropriate than playing everyday. Mayberry hasn’t faired much better at the plate, hitting just .232/.269/.377 with 6 HR and 23 RBI in 219 plate appearances. He’s been seeing a fair amount of time as the team’s fourth outfielder as well as filling in at first.

Perhaps what’s been most concerning, however, have been the struggles the team’s pitching staff has faced.

Cole Hamels might be unsure what his future holds, but he's pitched well despite the distractions. (Image Credit: Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE)

Roy Halladay struggled to a 4-5 record and 3.98 ERA in 11 starts before landing on the DL with a lat strain. The team’s long time ace might be nearing a return soon, however, potentially even by next weekend if things go well through his rehab starts. Meanwhile his rotation mate, Cliff Lee, has been a story in itself for much of the season’s first half. He’s made 14 starts and has matched Halladay’s 3.98 ERA, yet thanks to a stagnant offense has managed just a 1-5 record on the season.

Cole Hamels has been the best pitcher the Phillies have had, going 10-4 with a 3.20 ERA through 17 starts on the year. He’s seen plenty of time in the headlines this year – between beaning Bryce Harper back in April, his impending free agency, and now the possibility that he hits the trade market in the coming weeks. Phillies fans seem generally conflicted on Hamels’ situation, with some believing he should be handed a contract extension while others pining for a blockbuster trade at the end of July. His situation is one that will be necessary to follow in the coming weeks as it could have major implications to the team’s future.

Overpriced free agent signing Jonathan Papelbon has been reliable at the back end of the bullpen, saving 18 games with a 3.34 ERA over 33 appearances, but he’s been the group’s lone consistent option this year. Antonio Bastardo has struggled to locate the plate and the team has lost David Herndon (Tommy John Surgery) and Jose Contreras (torn right UCL, surgery has yet to be scheduled) to season-ending injuries. Rookie left-hander Jake Diekman has been a nice surprise since joining the bullpen, pitching to a 3.57 ERA with 13.2 K/9 (though he has walked 5.6/9) in 19 appearances.

It’s likely too early to count the Phillies completely out of things in the NL East, but the chances that they can come back from a 14.0 game deficit are slim. The Phillies and Nationals will play twelve more times this year – three in Washington between July 31st and August 2nd, three at Philadelphia from August 24-26, three at Philadelphia from September 25-27, and then a season-ending series at Washington October 1-3.