Stephen Strasburg and the Nationals Look For Third Straight Win in Philly
By Pablo Roa
Apr 20, 2014; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals starting pitcher
Stephen Strasburg(37) throws against the St. Louis Cardinals during the second inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit:
Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
After a comfortable two-game sweep against the Houston Astros this week and an off-day on Thursday, the Washington Nationals look to extend their winning streak to three games as they take on the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday. It’s the first time the Nationals have played their rivals all season.
Stephen Strasburg (2-2) takes the mound for the Nationals as he looks to continue his recent string of success. The right-hander is coming off one of the strongest outings of his career in which he gave up seven hits over seven scoreless innings while striking out ten batters against the Padres last Friday. It was the 14th time in his career that he has struck out ten batters or more.
The Phillies will counter with right-hander Cliff Lee (3-2) as they look to get back over .500 against the Nationals. While Lee already has three wins on the year, he struggled his last time out against the Arizona Diamondbacks, giving up five runs over six innings of work.
While Lee has been a perennial pain in the butt for the Nationals, Washington’s lineup has scored 11 runs in the last two games and should get a boost tonight as Adam LaRoche returns from a tight quad.
Prior to Friday night’s game, Washington (16-12) sits one and a half games back of the Atlanta Braves (17-10) in the National League East, and Philadelphia (13-13) sits three and a half back. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. EST.
Here are the lineups for tonight’s game:
Nationals:
Span CF
Rendon 3B
Werth RF
LaRoche 1B
Desmond SS
Espinosa 2B
Moore LF
Lobaton C
Strasburg P
Phillies:
Revere CF
Rollins SS
Utley 2B
Howard 1B
Byrd RF
Brown LF
Ruiz C
Asche 3B
Lee P