W - Lee (14-11), L - Mock (3-8)
The Phillies' offense and Cliff Lee both seemed to hit their stride together in this game. Behind a bases-clearing double by Carlos Ruiz, the Phils built an early five run lead on Garrett Mock and Cliff Lee just cruised through the Nationals' line up. It was a low-stress, important win for the Phillies, as they defeated the hapless Nationals by a final score of 5-0.
It's been a few weeks since Cliff Lee has looked as sharp as he did tonight. All of his pitches were working and he was able to get the put-away pitch when he needed it. Despite walking the bases loaded in the fourth inning, Lee kept his pitch count down and never seemed to lose control. On the night, Lee went the distance, shutting out the Nationals. He allowed six hits and three walks, while striking out nine Nationals hitters. It was a much-needed start for Lee and the Phillies, as the big lefty threw his third complete game and first shut out as a Phillie.
Garrett Mock was roughed up again early, but hung tough and pitched six innings for the Nationals. The Phillies were able to hit a few balls hard and paired them with some dunkers to score five earned runs off of Mock in the first two innings. After that, Mock kept the Phils off the board, but the damage was done, with Ruiz delivering the keynote, a three-run double. On the evening, Mock went six innings, allowing the five runs on seven hits and a pair of walks. He struck out two and made a poor base running mistake.
Tonight's win was the first time in several weeks that Phillie fans could relax and enjoy a game. With an early lead and Cliff Lee dealing, the Phils were never really in danger in this affair. It was good to see the offense score some organic runs without the aid of the long ball, though they could have done better to tack on runs. Nevertheless, the bottom line is their magic number drops to 12 and can be further reduced pending late night action.
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