Jesús Luzardo can’t escape seventh inning, bats stay cold in Phillies’ loss to Nationals

Jesús Luzardo entered the seventh inning at Nationals Park on Monday having allowed just one run and three hits — none of which came with a runner on base. The left-hander, who struggled out of the stretch for a period of time this summer, had recently turned a corner in such situations. He appeared to have continued that against the Nationals.

But in the Phillies’ eventual 3-2 loss to Washington, Luzardo couldn’t escape the seventh inning, being removed from the ballgame with the bases loaded and nobody out.

Luzardo walked Paul DeJong to begin the bottom of the seventh. Riley Adams then doubled into the left-center field gap. Luzardo issued another walk, this one to Daylen Lile, and his night was done.

Manager Rob Thomson called upon Orion Kerkering to get out of the mess after pulling Luzardo. The right-hander couldn’t do so unscathed.

José Tena hit a hard ground ball through the infield for a one-out single off Kerkering, driving in DeJong and Adams to give Washington a 3-2 lead. Kerkering worked his way out of seventh by inducing a groundout and getting a strikeout after Tena’s go-ahead base hit. Luzardo’s line closed, consisting of three earned runs in six-plus innings of work. He was eventually handed a loss.

The situation in the seventh wouldn’t have been so tight had Luzardo been given some run support. The Phillies, who scored one run between their two games against the Reds on Tuesday and Wednesday, looked rather hopeless against Nationals starter Brad Lord. The right-hander held the Phillies to two runs on seven hits in six innings.

The Phillies had some chances to score against Lord. They had runners on the corners with nobody out in the third inning. They scored just one run. Bryce Harper grounded into a force out, driving in Bryson Stott from third. Harper’s RBI was sandwiched between a Kyle Schwarber strikeout and J.T. Realmuto pop out that ended the inning.

The Phillies got another leadoff hitter on against Lord in the fifth. Edmundo Sosa walked. He was thrown out trying to steal second a few pitches later. Sosa being thrown out may have taken a run off the board. Schwarber doubled later in the inning, driving in Trea Turner from first base. Sosa would’ve easily scored on the play.

An inning later, a pair of strong defensive plays behind Lord by right fielder Dylan Crews and first baseman Josh Bell allowed the righty to work around a one-out single by Brandon Marsh.

The Phillies faced a quartet of Nationals relievers following Lord’s exit. They didn’t do much, collecting just three hits — all singles.

Max Kepler singled to start the top of the ninth but was stranded at third. Sosa bunted Kepler to second, and Stott moved him to third on a ground ball that was stopped by Bell behind the bag by the first-base line. Turner struck out to end the game, keeping the Phillies’ run total to three over their last three games, all losses.