Patrick Corbin walked seven on the mound at Citizens Bank Park last night but pitched five scoreless innings, allowing just one hit and a double. [s-e-v-e-n, se-ven!] batter.
However, Corbin managed to stop all the runners and pitched just 83 pitches in a 0-0 game between the Nationals and the Nationals. Philliesafter overcoming three no-out bases-loaded pinches, left the seventh free pass in five home halves.
Washington’s 34-year-old left-hander hit in the top of the sixth in back-to-back streaks by Joey Meneses and Keibert Lewis, striking out Philadelphia starter Aaron Nola, and Ildemaro Vargas doubled off the reliever’s mat. Strum pushed Meneses to take the Nationals 1-0, but went no-hitter in three of six games Wednesday night against Philadelphia.
Corbin returned to the mound in the sixth, but was substituted after whiffing a ball sent to the cover pitcher on Bryson Stott’s ground ball to first baseman Dom Smith.
Andrés Machado took over on his own, and the right-handed reliever pitched the second pitch, which allowed Trea Turner to hit a two-run homer, giving the Phillies a 2-1 victory.
In the 7th inning, Nick Castellanos hit a home run off lefty Joe La Sorsa, who walked the lead to make it 4-1. 6 -1. The game ended 6-2 in favor of the home side.
Manager Davey Martinez told reporters after the game that he sent Corbyn back in the sixth inning to face left-handed Stott, and then played against Machado and Turner as he wanted.
“Machado is throwing a good ball, our bullpen is throwing a good ball, and when you play against someone like Turner, you have to execute the pitch,” Martinez said. “That ball — he was going to go down and leave, that ball just went right in the middle. But like I said, we got the matchup we were looking for.
“Patrick threw the ball well and got us into the ball game. He gave us a strong five innings.”
“Obviously the walks stand out,” Corbyn admitted when speaking to reporters after the game. “It’s a dangerous formation. It was just, but yeah… 1-9 You can hit it from outside the ballpark, so especially in this ballpark, you know it’s going to come in, but you pitch a little better, you get a little bit more forward, but I felt okay overall.”
The fact that he put in so many players and didn’t give up an earned run surprised his manager.
“It was quite a surprise,” Martinez said. “And he’s playing against a team that hits really well, and if you make a mistake or two you can be behind, but like I said, he doesn’t let us out of the game and do well. Ta.”
The only hits he allowed was a double, but the manager said early in the series that the team was made to hit home runs, and he later hit a home run, but Corbin said he didn’t. starter keeps the ball in the yard. How did he limit SLG?
“I think if you walk seven, you’re not going to allow that many hits. That’s one way,” Corbyn joked.
“But I don’t know. It’s just — I think it’s the best [walks] I have experienced in my career*or at least it feels that way, so it’s not ideal, trying to stay in the corner and throw to the edge instead of trying to walk them with some guys in that lineup. Well, it was just a little off today.
“I think it was a plus to keep them in the ballpark today, but please try to be a little more aggressive.”
[ed. note – “ * = it was a career high in walks for Corbin.”]
After winning three in a row in Cincinnati and one in Philadelphia, Washington finished the road trip 4-3, but it was a small win.
“Another over .500 road trip,” Martinez said, “…now I have a chance to go home for a while. Let’s go 1-0 tomorrow.”
