Jimmy Rollins trots around third base after hitting a home run against the Nationals (AP Photo).
The Philadelphia Phillies got themselves right back in contention in the NL East division with a three-game sweep of the Washington Nationals over the weekend. Well, not really.
The weekend sweep was too little, too late for the Phillies’ playoff hopes this season, but it was still nice to see that the Phils won’t be pushovers down the stretch. They’re still 16.5 games behind the Nationals in the division and 9.5 games out in the Wild Card race. It would be real nice if they could continue playing the spoilers, especially to teams within the division with high playoff hopes, such as the Nationals and Atlanta Braves.
The Phillies got solid pitching all weekend long, allowing only 5 total runs over the three games. Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee picked up wins on Saturday and Sunday, respectively, but the real story was starter Kyle Kendrick, who had another solid outing on Friday. Kendrick lasted 6.2 innings, allowing 2 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks with 3 strikeouts. He’s had a solid month of August after being plugged back into the rotation, going 3-0 in 5 starts, and he’s won each of his last three games.
At the plate, Jimmy Rollins was hot, going 5-for-9 with 3 runs and 4 RBIs, while Juan Pierre stole his 32nd base of the season on Sunday, putting him in fourth place in that category in the Majors.
The Phillies have tonight off, followed by a three-game series at Citizens Bank Park against the New York Mets starting Tuesday. The projected pitching matchups for the series are Vance Worley vs. Chris Young, Cole Hamels vs. Matt Harvey, and Kyle Kendrick vs. Jonathon Niese.
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