Washington Nationals Surrender 7 Unearned Runs, Commit 3 Errors, Lose 11-3 To Philadelphia Phillies.

• Tonight's Citizens Bank Top 5: 

5. Two-In-A-Row?: It took Nats' left-hander John Lannan fourteen starts following his 2007 MLB debut against Philadelphia (in which he was ejected for hitting Chase Utley and Ryan Howard in succession in the 5th after they'd knocked him around the previous inning) before the Nationals' 26-year-old '05 11th Round pick finally beat the Phillies and tonight's starter Roy Oswalt for the first time. Lannan beat the Nats' NL East rivals in a 2-1 Washington win at home in Nats Park back on June 1st. Before then Lannan was 0-10 against the Phillies. He hasn't faced them since. Tonight in Citizens Bank, Lannan takes the mound in the bottom of the first and immediately has an error on a sharp grounder to second go against him, but two outs later he's almost out of trouble when he surrenders a two-run opposite field HR to Ryan Howard, who's 8 for 31 with 3 HR's against Lannan after hitting his 26th HR of 2011. 2-0 Phillies after the first...

4. Not Out? Really?: Michael Morse's 28th double of 2011 somehow doesn't go out, bouncing off the high wall to the left of the shrubbery in straight-center and falling in for a two-base hit he had to hustle to earn after turning it on from a trot. Morse takes third on another fly to the warning track in center by Jayson Werth and scores on an RBI double to left by Laynce NIx that cuts the Phillies' lead in half, 2-1. Ian Desmond golfs a low a 1-2 change from Oswalt to left and Nix scores from second ahead of a weak throw home by Raul Ibanez. 2-2 game when Lannan steps back on the mound, issues a two-out walk to the opposing pitcher but is otherwise unharmed in a 15-pitch bottom of the second. 

3. E: 17, Then 43 Pitches: 10 pitches and three quick outs after Lannan finishes up the second he's back on the mound when Shane Victorino reaches first safely on a throwing error by Ian Desmond to start the third. The Nats' SS is rushed on a weak grounder by the quick Philly outfielder and throws high for his fourth throwing error of the year and 17th E overall. Chase Utley follows with a single of his own to send Victorino from first to third and Ryan Howard drives the error in with the second hit in a row off Lannan. Utley around to third, still no outs, 3-2 Philadelphia.

A walk to Hunter Pence, Lannan's third walk, loads the bases with no one out, and the Phillies go up 4-2 on an RBI groundout to first by Raul Ibanez. Phils' catcher Carlos Ruiz gets the intentionals to load'em back up, and Wilson Valdez hits one straight down and it bounces straight up. John Lannan charges glove-flips around the runner Ryan Howard from halfway down the third base line, to Wilson Ramos behind home to get the force, what a play! Two outs. But the second walk of the night to the opposing pitcher forces in a run. 5-2. Rollins grounds to short for what should be a force, but Roy Oswalt beats the throw to second by Ian Desmond, allowing a run to score, and another crosses when Danny Espinosa falls at second and throws late to home as Wilson Valdez breaks from third for the plate. 7-2 Phillies. 

2. Rally vs Roy? Nope: Roy Oswalt sets ten of eleven batters down after Ian Desmond's two-out RBI single in the second, allowing only a walk to Jayson Werth in the fourth. 7-2 Phillies after a twelve-pitch top of the fifth. Collin Balester comes back out and throws his second scoreless frame in relief on ten pitches, 21 total to get the Nats through the fifth. Ryan Zimmerman singles with one down in the Nats' sixth, takes second on a wild pitch and scores on an RBI single to left by Michael Morse that gets the Nats within four at 7-3. 

1. Another E: Collin Balester's almost out of a bases-loaded, one out jam when Michael Morse, whose error on a grounder to first started the trouble, starts a double play with a throw to Ian Desmond at second. Balester gets over to cover first, but falls trying to stretch and drops the return throw. The Phillies' eighth run of the night crosses on what should have been a DP, and the third E of the night by the Nats leads to another run, and another unearned one. Seven of Philadelphia's eight runs are unearned. The Nationals trail by five after six. The Phillies add three more runs in the eighth to make it 11-3 after Henry Rodriguez (surprisingly) struggles in his second inning of work and Ryan Mattheus can't pitch his way out of the jam. Phillies win, 11-3 final. 

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• Doghouse's Post Game WPA Graph: COMING SOON.

Nationals now 57-62.