Rookie’s inside-the-park slam dooms Nationals

Bryce Harper needs just two walks to set a new Nationals/Expos record for most walks in a season.

In an 8-2 loss to the last-place Philadelphia Phillies, center fielder Michael Taylor did his own version of the crash and burn, playing an Aaron Altherr basehit into a game-changing, inside-the-park grand slam that will effectively crush the Nationals faint postseason hopes.

Zimmermann (13-9), who will be a free agent this offseason, exited after allowing six earned runs on six hits over five innings.

On the other side, the Phillies are just 8-20 in their last 28 trips to Washington and 1-6 in their last seven games overall versus the Nats.

“I’ve felt pretty good the past couple days”, Altherr said. He was pinch hit for with a man on and Washington trailing 6-1 in the fifth.

Phillies manager Pete Mackanin was asked if he’d ever seen an inside-the-park grand slam.

“In that situation, you better catch the ball, and I wouldn’t have gone for it if I didn’t think I could”, Taylor said. I was giving up quite a few hits. “Still a bad play once I miss it. It’s a tough play”.

“I’m sure I have over 47 years, ” he said.

The inside-the-park grand slam was the first in the majors since Randy Winn did it for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays against the New York Yankees on October 3, 1999. He is back to.252 (27-for-107) with nine doubles, three triples, five home runs, 16 RBIs and an.866 OPS in 31 games. Acquired in a trade from the Phillies in late July, Papelbon was ejected on Wednesday when he hit 3B Manny Machado of the Baltimore Orioles in the ninth inning after Machado hit a go-ahead homer in the seventh off RHP Max Scherzer.

Phillies: 1B Ryan Howard (knee) took batting practice Friday.

The Phillies are 7-3 in their last 10 Saturday games and 0-4 in their last 4 during game 2 of a series.

Eickhoff’s 10 strikeouts in a game are the most by a Phillies rookie since J.A. Happ whiffed 10 Rockies in a four-hit shutout on August 5, 2009.