By: Rebecca Serad, Sports Talk Philly Staff 
Final: Philadelphia Phillies 4, Washington Nationals 1 ❖ Attendance: 25,412
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Philadelphia Phillies (63-77) were in desperate need of a win against the Washington Nationals (82-58). They had lost their last nine games against the Nats, which is the longest losing streak the Phillies have ever had against the Nationals/Expos franchise. Also in need of a win was Alec Asher, who was 0-6 with a 9.31 ERA during his time in the big leagues last season, after being acquired from the Texas Rangers in the Cole Hamels trade. Tonight, Asher was making his first start of the year and had something to prove after serving an 80 game suspension for the use of PED.
To say that Asher was fantastic would be an understatement. The righty threw six innings and only allowed two hits and a single walk. Of his 75 pitches, 55 were strikes. Asher probably could have went further into the game, but the Phillies broadcasters noted that the coaches were looking for him to throw 90 pitches, maximum. Asher's first major league victory was well-earned.
On the offensive front, the Phillies used the long ball to their advantage. Both Peter Bourjos and Ryan Howard homered in the third inning. Howard's bomb proved to be especially important, as he put three runs on the board with just one swing of the bat.
WP: Alec Asher (1-0, 0.00 ERA) ❖ LP: A.J. Cole (1-2, 4.56 ERA) ❖ SV: Jeanmar Gomez (36)
Hub: Game Summary ❖ Starting Pitchers ❖ At the Plate ❖ Bullpen ❖ What's Next
Game Summary
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
| PHI | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 1 |
| WSH |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 |
The bats were silent for both teams until the top of the third. Peter Bourjos led off the inning with his fifth homer of the year. One out later, Cesar Hernandez singled to right field. After a strike out by Odubel Herrera, third baseman Andres Blanco was hit by a pitch to put runners on first and second with two outs for Ryan Howard. Howard followed with a home-run to center field to give the Phillies a 4-0 lead. Cameron Rupp struck out to end the inning, but it was good to see the Phils get on the board first in the game.
The Nationals offense made some noise for the first time in the game in the eighth inning. With one out, Stephen Drew singled to right field. Trea Turner followed with a double to left field to put runners on second and third. Former Phillie Jayson Werth walked to load the bases for the hot-hitting Daniel Murphy. He hit a deep fly ball to left to score Drew from third and put the Nats on the board. Phillies reliever Hector Neris was able to strike out Bryce Harper for the final out and avoid letting any more runs score.
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alec Asher | 6.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| A.J. Cole | 5.0 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 4.56 |
Phillies
- Peter Bourjos: 1-4, R, HR, RBI, .252 AVG
- Ryan Howard: 1-3, R, HR, 3 RBI, .195 AVG
- Cesar Hernandez: 1-4, R, .289 AVG
Nationals
- Daniel Murphy: 1-3, 2B, RBI, .345 AVG
- Trea Turner: 1-4, 2B, .344 AVG
- Bryce Harper: 0-4, .250 AVG
Phillies
- Edubray Ramos (7th): 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO, 0 HR, 3.58 ERA
- Hector Neris (8th): 1.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 2.36 ERA
- Jeanmar Gomez (9th): 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO, 0 HR, 3.34 ERA
Nationals
- Matt Belisle (6th, 7th): 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 1.88 ERA
- Matt Grace (8th): 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 0.00 ERA
- Yusmeiro Petit (8th, 9th): 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 3.90 ERA
- Friday, September 9, 2016: at Washington Nationals, 7:05 p.m.
- Nationals Park
- RHP Jake Thompson (1-5, 6.48 ERA) vs. RHP Tanner Roark (14-8, 2.89 ERA)
- TV: CSN; Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
