By Sam Bush
The Phillies lost their eighth out of their last nine last night, and they couldn’t hold a lead, which has become a bad habit!
“We’ve been extremely competitive all year,” Mackanin said afterward. “Hopefully in the near future I’m going to be able to say that we’re winning those games and stepping up and getting that big hit when we need it late.”
The Phillies had a 4-0 lead through 4 2/3 innings. The Nats climbed back in the game thanks to a four-run fifth inning off rookie starter Nick Pivetta, who was cruising through four scoreless innings. The 24-year-old right-hander’s night ended after he allowed a two-run home run to Trea Turner, and a few batters later, a game-tying two-run double to Ryan Zimmerman.
“That was a pretty big deal-breaker,” Pivetta said. “It wasn’t exactly how I wanted it to go.”
“We had some scoring opportunities, we just couldn’t add on,” Mackanin said. “That’s what we have to do, especially with a team like this. We scratched and clawed for four runs … [the Nats] get them in bunches.
“I felt pretty good about that, we just couldn’t come up with the big hit.”
