It happens almost every fall. The Phillies enter late September with a chance to clinch the NL East title and the last-place Nationals on their schedule.
By the end of the ensuing three-game series the Phils are spraying champagne in their locker room in celebration. The 2010 season is no different. For the fourth year in a row – and the third time while playing the Nats — the Phillies rule the NL East.
Jayson Werth launched a solo homer in the second inning and knocked in three more runs. Roy Halladay did the rest, pitching a complete-game shutout in an 8-0 victory with two hits allowed, no walks and six strikeouts.
The Phils broke the game open in the sixth when Werth laced a one-out pitch off John Lannan into the outfield to score two runs and give his team a 3-0 lead.
“You try not to think about it, but I’ve seen it on TV?so many times,” Halladay said about the celebration. “It’s everything it’s cracked up to be.”
