Series Preview: Phillies at Nationals, 8/19-8/21

The Phillies (80-42), winners of 15 of their last 18 contests, hit the road to open a three-game series in Washington DC against the National (59-63).

The Nationals have dropped 7 of the 11 meetings between these two clubs this season.

Roy Oswalt, who has not won in Washington as a member of the Phillies, will take the mound for the series opener. Washington will counter with veteran hurler Livan Hernandez, who allowed 1 unearned run over 6 2/3 innings in a win against the Phillies last week.

Read ahead for more info on the pitching match ups and other key details from this series.

Friday, 7:05PM. Roy Oswalt (5-7, 3.84 ERA) vs. Livan Hernandez (7-11, 4.21 ERA). In 19 career games against Washington, Oswalt has posted a 6-4 record with a 3.17 ERA. On the road this year, Oswalt is 2-5 with a 4.17 ERA in 9 games. Laynce Nix is 11-for-23 (.478 avg) with 4 doubles, 1 triple and 3 HR in his career against Oswalt. In 12 home starts this year, Hernandez is 5-3 with a 3.27 ERA. Hernandez is 2-2 with a 5.31 ERA over his last 4 starts. Ryan Howard is 6-for-12 (.500 avg) with 2 HR this season against Hernandez.

Saturday, 7:05PM. Kyle Kendrick (7-5, 3.25 ERA) vs. John Lannan (8-8, 3.55 ERA). Kendrick has a 6.36 ERA in 11 career outings against the Nationals. In 6 games since the All-star break, Kendrick is 3-1 with a 2.61 ERA. Ryan Zimmerman is 9-for-19 (.474 avg) with a HR in his career against Kendrick. In his last 5 home starts, the lefty Lannan is 2-2 with a 4.45 ERA. Lannan has a 1-11 record and a 5.84 ERA in 15 career starts against the Phillies. Raul Ibanez is 12-for-25 (.480 avg) with 2 HR in his career against Lannan.

Sunday, 1:35PM. Roy Halladay (15-5, 2.53 ERA) vs. Chien-Ming Wang (2-2, 4.21 ERA). Halladay has an 11-1 record with a 2.21 ERA in 15 career games against the Nationals. In his last 5 starts, Halladay is 4-1 with a 2.41 ERA. Wang is 1-2 with a 5.87 ERA in 3 home games this year. The right-handed Wang will be making his fifth Major League start this year after returning from shoulder problems.

Ryan Zimmerman is a career .280 hitter in 90 games against the Phillies. In 35 home games this season, Zimmerman is batting .321.

In 21 career games against the Phillies, Laynce Nix has a .192 batting average. Nix has posted a .175 average in 24 games since the All-star break.

Michael Morse has a .358 average with 4 HR in 26 career games against the Phillies.

In 25 road road games this season, Antonio Bastardo has a 3-0 record with 5 saves, a 1.11 ERA and a .125 batting average against.

Ryan Howard is batting .231 in 57 road games this season. In 31 career games at Nationals Park, Howard has a line of .262/.336/.582.

In 26 games since the All-star break, Shane Victorino has posted a .343 batting average with 4 HR, 10 RBI and 22 runs scored.

Phillies team ERA- 3.07
Nats team ERA- 3.70

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