Washington Nationals: 5 To Watch In Philly

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The Washington Nationals start a five-game road trip this weekend with three against the Philadelphia Phillies. Here are five to keep an eye on.

Another successful series has the Washington Nationals flying high at 19-9. With bubble gum, rubber bands and duct tape, the bullpen continues to pace the Nats as they grabbed two of three from the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks.

With their win Thursday afternoon, Washington finishes a six-game homestand at 3-3. Although not ideal from afar, the Nats salvaged a sweep with an epic beatdown of the New York Mets Sunday followed by a strong performance mid-week.

In a rare symmetrical trip, Washington travels up I-95 for three against the Philadelphia Phillies and two in Baltimore before the Orioles and Phillies return the favor in DC. When the return series ends next Sunday, the Nats and Phillies will have played 12 of their scheduled 19 games this season.

The Phillies start the weekend at 12-15, 6.5 games behind Washington in the National League East. The two teams split their first six, with the home teams winning each series.

Since these teams met, the Nationals offense kicked into high gear. Recording five games where they scored double-digits, Washington is 12-4 since their last meeting. Tied for first after the last game, the red-hot Nats built the largest divisional lead in MLB.

It has not been bad for the Phillies either. Before this tough road trip to Los Angeles and Chicago, the Fightin’s, took seven of eight from the rest of the division. Swept by the Dodgers, along with dropping three of four at Wrigley Field, the Phillies are looking for home cooking.

Although Howie Kendrick and Aaron Nola will miss the series, there are plenty of old friends to keep an eye on this weekend. Friday and Saturday are night affairs while Sunday is the lone day game.

With that in mind, here are five players to watch as the Washington crosses the Delaware.

BRYCE HARPER

Although you can say Bryce Harper is always a player to watch, the slugger left Thursday’s win over Arizona in the sixth inning. Complaining of groin tightness following a diving catch and a hard swinging strike out, the 2015 NL MVP is day-to-day this weekend.

The last two weeks have seen Harper shred pitching. When he makes contact, his BAbip is .448. His batting eye is incredible, drawing 12 walks over the last 12 games. With an on-base percentage of .509, he is in contention for a second Most Valuable Player award.

Groin injuries are painful. If this was not a divisional series, you would expect him to rest at least one game if not two. Harper, however, loves facing the Phillies. Unless he is in true pain or risks further injury, he is playing.

Yet, as he nurses the injury, he will not be at full strength. Watch for how comfortable he is at the plate and what Harper swings at. Chris Heisey filled in Thursday. Expect more of the same over the weekend depending on stiffness.

Against the Phillies this year in six games, Harper has a slash line of .280/.333/.640. Philly pitchers fanned him six times with two walks. He has slammed three homers driving in seven. Something has to give.

CESAR HERNANDEZ

As a leadoff hitter, Cesar Hernandez is off to a great start.

The second baseman came into Thursday with a slash line of .321/.368/.514. With four homers and 11 extra-base hits, his .881 OPS adjusts to 132. The most productive bat for Philly is 32 percent above league average.

Defensively, he is good. Baseball Reference gives him a d-WAR of 0.3 with two runs saved. The Phillies, even with their current record, are a mild surprise in the NL this year and Hernandez is a major reason.

Last year’s NL triples leader with 11 has two already this season. At Citizens Bank Park, Hernandez is hitting .395 in 11 games.

He also hits the Nats well, earning a reputation as a Washington pain in the rear. In six games, his slash line of .423/.483/.808 causes nightmares. Of his 10 RBI this season, seven have come against the Nationals. Two doubles, a triple and two homers confound Dusty Baker and the pitching staff.

There is a reason the Phillies have split the first six with Washington. Hernandez just pounds them. If he continues hitting everything for extra bases, this could be a long weekend for the Nats and put the Phillies within earshot of first place.

A.J. COLE

When A.J. Cole woke up Monday morning, he had every reason to believe he would spend most of the year in Syracuse. Although Joe Ross pitched poorly Sunday against the Mets, Cole’s performance with the Chiefs was not promotion worthy.

Then Ross was demoted that afternoon and Cole got the call. Missing the Diamondbacks series serving a three-game suspension for throwing behind a Pittsburgh Pirates hitter in September, the thought was he would join the bullpen this weekend.

Then Jacob Turner pitched four innings Wednesday night in relief and Cole is now starting Saturday. Not bad for a pitcher with an ERA of 6.63 and a WHIP of 1.789 in four starts and 19 innings.

Yet, here he is grabbing a surprise spot start in place of Ross and Turner. Now, before the nightmare of Jeremy Guthrie’s Saturday start in Philly flood back, Cole had eight big-league starts last year and pitched mediocre.

In those starts, Cole went 1-2 with an ERA of 5.17 filling in for the injured Stephen Strasburg. Expectations are lower this time with Turner eventually taking the starter role as Cole gets long relief. Maybe.

With limited numbers, Cole pitched well against Philadelphia. Saddled with a loss and a 5.79 ERA, he struck out 15 over 9.1 frames in two games. As with other games where the bullpen plays a big role, parental discretion is advised.

HECTOR NERIS

Like the Nats, the Phillies closer situation is a hot mess. For now the job belongs to Hector Neris, the hard-throwing righty from the Dominican Republic.

After Jeanmar Gomez and veteran Joaquin Benoit struggled, Neris inherited the role. Converting his first three save chances, the Dodgers shredded him for four runs and three homers last Saturday over a third of an inning. His ERA jumped from 2.19 to 4.97 as the Phillies lost 6-5.

Back home, will he get the ninth-inning chance if the Phillies can win? As they face Stephen Strasburg Friday and Tanner Roark Sunday, the chance to win is the highest Saturday. Benoit has better overall numbers, but Neris has pitched well in the games he has saved.

Because he has struggled, Neris’ role is on the line this weekend. With the Nationals bullpen still unsettled, anything the Phillies give up is not an automatic loss. His margin for error currently is slim. Another bad performance will cost him his job.

No pressure or anything.

The Nats have struggled against Neris in 2017. In 4.1 innings, they have a hit and a walk against him with no runs, five strikeouts and two double plays. If there is a team restoring his confidence, Washington fits.

MICHAEL TAYLOR

The emergence of Michael Taylor as an offensive threat after Adam Eaton’s ACL injury is a pleasant surprise.

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Hitting nearly .500 over the last week, Taylor raised his average from last Friday’s .095 to .237 heading into Thursday. Yes, strikeouts play too big a role for him. But, his speed legged out a triple and double. He is aggressive early in the count, starting Thursday with a first pitch single off Braden Shipley.

Given one last chance to show he can play in the majors with Washington, Taylor has run with it. As fans can breathe easier, he is settling in again as a regular.

No one questions his defense. Taylor’s speed gives him great range in center field. The concern was his offensive burst a change for him or bad Mets pitching? With Arizona in the rear-view mirror, the success is his.

As the pressure subsides and attention turns elsewhere, can Taylor turn center field into his position? Early returns are promising.

Next: A closer look at Jacob Turner

His career numbers against the Phillies are not good, but the focus is on the future not the past. If he can play well, it goes down as a successful weekend. Taylor’s strikeout problems are familiar with Philly, they have rung him up 40 times.

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