4/25/07 CHASE UTLEY! CHASE? UTLEY!! CHASE UTLEY? CHASE….UTLEY!!!!
The Washington Nationals leadoff hitter Felipe Lopez starts tonight’s game with a .302 batting average, and we’ll see what the Philadelphia Phillies starter Jon Lieber has to say about that, in this the second of a three game series. Lopez strikes out looking. A fly ball out to left for Ronnie Belliard and Ryan Zimmerman provides Jon Lieber’s second K of the first inning to end the frame. 
Ryan Howard’s shoulders sink noticeably as he stares at the final destination of John Patterson’s curve, which comes in slow, high and inside then gently breaks across the plate and into the zone for strike three and the third out of the bottom of the first inning. 0-0.
The rain starts to fall on Citizens Bank Ballpark in the second inning. Ryan Church at bat against Lieber with two out, and the wind pulls two slices foul before Church gets around on one, which he grounds out to second.
Patterson, back on the mound, gives up a leadoff double to Pat Burrell. Wes Helms puts up a good fight for several pitches with a 2-2 count, and then stares at a fastball for strike three. Aaron Rowand singles through short, Burrell holds at third, and Rowand advances when Robert Fick’s throw in from left sails over the cutoff man to Brian Schneider, and just up the line left of home plate. Carlos Ruiz knocks in a run with a groundout. 1-0 Philly. 
Patterson records two outs in the third…Chase Utley doubles off the wall in left…Ryan Howard goes deep to right, and gone! Howard homers. Two-run blast. 3-0 Phillies after three. The Nationals come up in the fourth, Lopez and Belliard single, Zimmerman grounds into a double play, Lopez safe at third. Dmitri Young singles, Lopez scores. 3-1 Philly. Austin Kearns puts one as deep in center as it can go without leaving the yard, off the wall, Young scores. 3-2 Philly after three and a half…
LOST…
…John Patterson lasts 5.1 IP, allowing 8 hits, 6 runs, all earned, 3 walks, 3 K’s, and 1 HR allowed. Patterson leaves the game in the sixth, with two men on base, relief pitcher Micah Bowie walks Jimmy Rollins to load the bases, and Shane Victorino and CHASE UTLEY get back to back singles to score three runs and give the Phillies a 7-2 lead. Austin Kearns scores on Brian Schneider’s ground out in the seventh, but that’s as close as the Nationals will get. The Phillies add two more in the eigth on Jimmy Rollins eigth home run of the season. Phillies win. 9-3 final.
Nationals now 6-15.
DC Daily 
—there seems to be some kind of temporal distortion or data corruption in the blog every so often. there’s a pattern to it. perhaps it has something to do with the earth’s precessional wobble or an increase in solar activity. WAIT, NO. it must be Global Warming !!! game seems like it was a stinker anyway, maybe AM’s blog has something in it about baseball…
…by the way the aforementioned first inning futility hit record proportions the other day. why no mention ? it might be the only record the nats set this year. sorry met oldtimers, put the champagne back in the ‘fridge.