PHILADELPHIA _ J.P. Crawford slapped his hands Monday night almost as soon as his feet left the batter's box. He rounded first base, saw the go-ahead run had scored in a 6-1 win over the Reds and slapped them again.
The shortstop downplayed his struggles when he started the season mired in a wicked slump. But there was no downplaying this. It was obvious that this _ a go-ahead single with two outs in the seventh _ brought relief. The emotion was obvious. Crawford entered that at-bat hitless in his last 18 at-bats. His liner to right field was just his second hit of the season. Crawford finally came through.
The hit was a breakthrough for Crawford and it provided a needed run for Aaron Nola, who pitched brilliantly but seemed to be headed for a no-decision. The right-hander allowed just one run and threw 103 pitches to become the first Phillies pitcher this season to log eight innings. Nola struck out six, walked three, and allowed three hits. His curveball was nasty and his fastball command was on-point. Nola looked like the top of the rotation arm that the Phillies hope he is. And he deserved to have a win.
Nola's first win of the season was made secure when Scott Kingery hit a two-out grand slam in the eighth. It was Kingery's second straight night with a homer. Tanner Rainey snuck a slider past Kingery for strike one and then tried to come back with another. No chance. Kingery ripped the slam to left field. Hoby Milner protected the five-run lead with a 1-2-3 ninth.
The Phillies were held hitless until the sixth inning when Cesar Hernandez laced a one-out single to right. Homer Bailey dueled with Nola as the Reds right-hander struck out seven in six innings without allowing a walk. But the Phillies finally cracked him. Odubel Herrera followed two batters later with a two-out double to drive in Hernandez and tie the game at 1. The Phillies, no longer hitless, had their first run. Now they needed a lead.
Gabe Kapler sat Crawford on Monday so the shortstop could work on some things. It seemed more like a mental break than anything else. Crawford was the team's top prospect for almost as long as he was in the minor leagues. This season, his first full year in the majors, was supposed to be his arrival. But the start could not have been worse.
He said on Sunday that he was not "tripping" over his first two weeks. He would never lose belief in himself. Crawford, who has always seemed to carry himself with confidence, waged on. He lined out and popped up before coming to the plate in the seventh. Crawford watched two sinkers fall for strikes. Lauded for his plate discipline even when he was slumping, Crawford laid off two pitches to work the count even. Another sinker came and Crawford did not miss. He finally got his hit and Nola would get his win.
