By Matt Rappa, Sports Talk Philly editor 
Looking for their fourth straight series win — and their first at Nationals Park since April 26-28, 2016 — the Philadelphia Phillies (40-33) will opposite rookie RHP Erick Fedde and the Washington Nationals (40-34) Saturday afternoon in the second of a three-game series. Fellow 2014 first round draft pick Aaron Nola will start for the Phillies, his 16th of the season.
The Phillies routed the Nationals 12-2 in Friday's opener thanks to center fielder Odubel Herrera's 4-5 night, including homering in his fifth straight game to give the club a 4-2 lead. Carlos Santana and Nick Williams also produced four and three RBI, respectively, in the win. Right-hander Zach Eflin won his fourth straight start, allowing just a pair of runs through five frames and as many strikeouts. Austin Davis, Yacksel Rios and Zac Curtis combined to throw four shutout innings in relief. The win lifted the Phillies over the Nationals into second place in the division and National League Wild Card standings.
Odubel Herrera has tied a #Phillies record for most consecutive games with a homer. Rhys Hoskins, Chase Utley (twice), Bobby Abreu, Mike Schmidt and Dick Allen also had five-game homer streaks.
— Scott Lauber (@ScottLauber) June 23, 2018
A win on Saturday would put the Phillies at the .500 mark in June contests, 10-10. The club went 1-2 in March, 15-10 in April and 15-11 in May. The Phillies are 7-4 (.636) in Saturday games this season, their second-highest winning percentage among all days (Thursday, 6-3, .667).
Starting Pitching Matchup:
| Philadelphia Phillies (40-33) | Washington Nationals (40-34) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RHP | Aaron Nola | RHP | Erick Fedde | ||
| (8-2, 2.55 ERA) | (0-2, 5.63 ERA) | ||||
RHP Aaron Nola, Age: 25
- Career vs. WSN: 1-4, 4.50 ERA, 10 G, 10 GS, 54 IP, 61 H, 28 R, 27 ER, 7 HR, 13 BB, 65 SO, 1.370 WHIP
- Career at Nationals Park: 0-1, 2.42 ERA, 5 G, 5 GS, 26 IP, 28 H, 8 R, 7 ER, 0 HR, 4 BB, 29 SO, 1.231 WHIP
Nola has not fared well in his career against the Nationals, going 1-4 with a 4.50 ERA and 1.370 WHIP in 10 starts, albeit striking out 65 batters in 54 innings. Thus June, the All-Star hopeful is 1-0 with a 4.24 ERA through three appearances.
RHP Erick Fedde, Age: 25
- Career vs. PHI: N/A
- Career at Nationals Park: 0-3, 7.71 ERA, 4 G, 4 GS, 21 IP, 30 H, 18 R, 18 ER, 3 HR, 7 BB, 18 SO, 1.762 WHIP
Fedde will make his seventh career start, and his first against the Phillies. The rookie has yet to secure a win for the Nationals, who drafted him 11 picks after Nola in the 2014 amateur draft out of the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. Over his last five starts since August 6, 2017, Fedde has surrendered 19 runs — including eight home runs — in 27 1/3 combined innings.
Starting Lineups:
| Philadelphia Phillies (40-33) | Washington Nationals (40-34) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Player | Bats | Position | Player | Bats | ||
| 1 | 2B | Cesar Hernandez | S | 1 | RF | Adam Eaton | L |
| 2 | LF | Rhys Hoskins | R | 2 | CF | Bryce Harper | L |
| 3 | CF | Odubel Herrera | L | 3 | 3B | Anthony Rendon | R |
| 4 | 1B | Carlos Santana | S | 4 | LF | Juan Soto | L |
| 5 | RF | Nick Williams | L | 5 | 1B | Daniel Murphy | L |
| 6 | SS | Scott Kingery | R | 6 | SS | Trea Turner | R |
| 7 | 3B | Maikel Franco | R | 7 | 2B | Wilmer Difo | S |
| 8 | C | Jorge Alfaro | R | 8 | C | Spencer Kieboom | R |
| 9 | P | Aaron Nola | R | 9 | P | Erick Fedde | R |
Broadcast Information:
- First pitch: 4:05 p.m.
- TV: NBCSP
- Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
Game Notes:
- After securing second place in the National League East on Friday, the Phillies will next look to jump either the Atlanta Braves or Chicago Cubs atop the division and Wild Card standings, respectively.
- Active Phillies hit streaks: Cesar Hernandez (7), Rhys Hoskins (6), Herrera (5)
- The Phillies have lost 25 of their last 36 games against the Nationals since May 30, 2016, outscored 159-143 (-16). The Phillies have lost 9 of 11 series over that stretch.
ONLY Players in MLB History with HRs in 5 Straight GMs + 40 GM on-base streak in SAME Year
⚾️Babe Ruth (1921)
⚾️Barry Bonds (2001 & 2003)
⚾️Jim Thome (2002)
⚾️Jim Edmonds (2004)
⚾️Odubel Herrera (2018)@6abc@phillies@odubelherrera1#Phillies#OdubelHerrera#BeBold pic.twitter.com/oiZIvaapHz— Jeff Skversky 6abc (@JeffSkversky) June 23, 2018
- No Phillies has yet to face Fedde. Bryce Harper, meanwhile, is 8-17 lifetime against Nola with two home runs and five RBI (.471/.474/.824). Daniel Murphy (offseason knee surgery), who made his season debut on June 12, is 8-20 against Nola with three doubles, one triple, one home run and three RBI. Murphy has just three hits in 30 plate appearances thus far in 2018.
What's Next:
Sunday, June 24, 2018: at Washington Nationals, 8:05 p.m.
- Nationals Park, Washington, D.C.
- RHP Nick Pivetta (4-6, 4.08 ERA) vs. RHP Jefry Rodriguez (0-0, 4.66 ERA)
- TV: ESPN; Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
