Phillies vs. Mets

The first place Phillies stayed hot, defeating the Mets by a score of 3-2 in Philly for their 11th straight victory.

Shane Victorino led off the first with a home run and doubled home a run in the second off of Mets starter R.A. Dickey as the Phillies jumped out to an early 2-0 lead.  The Mets tied the game in the top of the fourth inning when Angel Pagan blasted a two run homer off of Joe Blanton, but the Phils regained the lead in the bottom of the frame thanks to a Carlos Ruiz RBI single.

Blanton (8-6) pitched seven solid innings for the victory, allowing just those two runs and striking out six.  Dickey (11-8) gave up three runs and eight hits over six innings and suffered the loss.  Brad Lidge pitched around a double and a walk to earn his 27th save and help the Phillies inch closer to the NL East crown.

Braves vs. Nationals

The Braves visited the nation’s capital hoping to get back on the winning track.  Instead, they dropped their fourth straight as the Nationals defeated Atlanta 8-3.

Adam Dunn hit two homers and drove in five runs to lead the way for the Nationals.   Dunn hit both homers off of Braves starter Tim Hudson.  Hudson (16-9) had a rough night, allowing six runs, six walks, and seven hits over 5 2/3 innings.  Meanwhile, Jordan Zimmermann (1-2) earned his first victory since June 2009, holding Atlanta to one run and three hits over five innings.  Willie Harris hit an inside-the-park home run for the Nationals in the victory, while Omar Infante homered for the Braves in the loss.

Marlins vs. Brewers

The Marlins fell a game below .500 after falling to the Brewers by a score of 6-2 Friday night in Milwaukee.

Ryan Braun drove in three runs to help the Brewers jump out to a 4-0 lead against Andrew Miller (1-4) and the Marlins.  Braun singled home two runs in the third and doubled home another run in the fifth.  Mark Rogers made his first major league start for the Brewers.  Rogers allowed no hits and struck out four, but was pulled after three innings as the Brewers had Rogers on a 60-pitch limit.  Jeremy Jeffress (1-0) earned his first career victory with two scoreless innings in relief.