in the third.Ivan Nova (12-8) lost hi

WASHINGTON -- The Philadelphia Phillies certainly got a good return on their investment when they traded veteran left-handed pitcher Cole Hamels to the Texas Rangers in July, 2015.Philadelphia got in return pitchers Alec Asher, Jake Thompson and Jerad Eickhoff.Asher started for the Phillies on Thursday night and got the win against the Washington Nationals. Thompson will get the ball Friday as he faces Tanner Roark of Washington in the second game of the four-game set.Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said after Thursdays 4-1 win it is good to see all three pitchers from the Hamels trade get a shot with Philadelphia.He looked very confident, said Mackanin, of Asher. Asher really pitched well. He got away with a few line drives here and there. I didnt realize he had that good of a changeup. It was good to see the confidence he showed.Thompson is 1-5 with a 6.48 ERA in six starts this year -- the first of his major league career. In 33 1/3 innings he has allowed 33 hits and 18 walks with 22 strikeouts.He is 0-1 with a 2.57 ERA in one start against the Nationals, when he went seven innings and gave up seven hits and two runs.Roark, a 25th-round draft pick by the Texas Rangers in 2008, is 14-8 with a 2.89 ERA this year and has been a thorn in the side of the Phillies.A former University of Illinois pitcher, Roark is 3-0 with a 0.64 ERA in four starts against Philadelphia. He has gone at least seven innings in each start.Despite that, several members of the Phillies have enjoyed success against Roark.Odubel Herrera is hitting .429 in 14 at-bats against him, while Cesar Hernandez has a mark of .364 in 11 trips to the plate.Freddy Galvis is hitting .300 in 10 at-bats against Roark while Maikel Franco -- who did not start Thursday -- is hitting .286 in 14 at-bats. Ryan Howard has a mark of .267 in 15 at-bats against Roark.Roark won 15 games in 2014 and he is line to be one of the top three starters for the Nationals if they make the playoffs.His role could take on more meaning as Stephen Strasburg left his start on Wednesday in the third inning after just 42 pitches with a flexor mass strain. His return is uncertain but he will not need a second Tommy John surgery.The Nationals are also without Joe Ross, who has been on the disabled list since July.Its important but we cant rush him because wed have two of them down, Baker said of Strasburg and Ross.A.J. Cole started Thursday for the Nationals and could see more action down the stretch.In the third inning I had two bad pitches but coming out of all of this its learning for me, he said. I need to shake off. Howard hit a good pitch but at the same time if Im going to throw that changeup I have to throw it in the ground. Wholesale Custom Phillies Shirts . Any real chance at payback wont come until the playoff. Still, Pittsburgh knows its taut 3-2 win over the Bruins on Wednesday night is a pretty good place to start laying the groundwork. "They are a very good defensive team," Penguins forward Brandon Sutter said. Custom Phillies Jersey China . 4 Villanova with a 96-68 drubbing on Monday. Wragge hit 9-of-14 from behind the arc, matching Kyle Korvers school record for 3-pointers in a game set in 2003, as Creighton (16-3, 6-1 Big East broke a conference record with 21 treys in the rout. http://www.customphilliesjersey.com/ . The 18-year-old American had five birdies in her bogey-free round for a 17-under total of 196. Lee held the overnight lead but mixed three birdies with two bogeys for a 70. Richie Ashburn Jersey Large . Scott Kazmir allowed four hits in seven shutout innings, Michael Brantley hit a two-run homer in a three-run first inning and the Indians maintained their hold on an AL wild-card spot with a 4-1 win over the Houston Astros on Saturday night. Cheap Phillies Jerseys . The third-ranked Ivanovic, who won the event in 2008 and 10, served five aces and broke Wickmayer, also a former winner in 2009, five times. "The result looked easier than it really was," Ivanovic said. PITTSBURGH -- Jayson Werths wide grin belied the fact that the Washington Nationals right fielder is an old hand at clubhouse celebrations, having played on eight division-winning teams during his 14-year big league career.Werths latest crown came Saturday night when the Nationals clinched their third National League East title in five years, beating the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-1 behind 5 1/3 scoreless innings from rookie reliever Reynaldo Lopez.Its never gets old, Werth said. Never.Stephen Drews two-run single capped a three-run first inning for the Nationals, who return to the postseason after a one-year absence. Their win ensured a playoff berth, and they won the division about 20 minutes later when the second-place New York Mets lost to Philadelphia.Its such a hard thing to accomplish, Werth said. You spent six months trying to do it. Its why you go to spring training early, so you can do everything possible to put yourself in positon to win the division.The Nationals won the division in Dusty Bakers first season as manager. He replaced Matt Williams, who fired following a 2015 season that began with high hopes of Washington reaching the World Series for the first time in franchise history.Baker had been out of the game for two years after being fired by the Cincinnati Reds following the 2013 season, four days after they lost to the Pirates in the NL wild card.Thats what I came here for, Baker said, standing in a corner of the clubhouse and watching his players celebrate. Im telling you -- let these young men have a great time tonight, back to work tomorrow. First step in a four-step process. This step is the hardest to get. Im just so happy for these guys. I love them. I love this team.Lopez (4-3) came on to the start the bottom of the fourth inning with a 6-1 lead and allowed three hits while striking out five and walking one. He was removed a runner on first and one out in the ninth inning.He was really impressive, Werth said. We still have some questions about our roster going into the postseason. Hes a great talent and if he pitches like he did tonight he can really help us.Marc Rzepczynski and BBlake Treinen got one out each to end the game, and a pocket of Nationals fans behind the visiting dugout cheered.ddddddddddddJoe Ross allowed one run and five hits over 2 2/3 innings in his second start since missing 2 1/2 months with right shoulder inflammation.Drews single came after Bryce Harpers sacrifice fly. Harper also drove in a run with a grounder during a three-run fourth that included three errors and increased the Nationals lead to 6-1. Jayson Werth hit into a run-scoring forceout and Anthony Rendon had a sacrifice fly.Wilson Ramos had three hits for the Nationals, and Drew and Werth added two each.Pittsburgh lost for the just the third time in 10 games but fell four games out of the second NL wild card with eight games remaining.Rookie Josh Bell homered in the third.Ivan Nova (12-8) lost his second straight start, giving up six runs -- three earned -- and eight hits in four innings. He had gone 5-0 in his first eight starts after being acquired from the New York Yankees on Aug. 1 in a trade.I thought he was getting into a nice spot going into the fourth inning and we more or less took him out of the game with our defense, Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said.TRAINERS ROOMNationals: Drew was taking the place of 2B Daniel Murphy (strained glute), who did not start for the sixth game in a row.Pirates: RF Gregory Polanco (facial bruise) sat out a day after being injured while running in the fence while chasing a fly ball. . LF Starling Marte (back strain) was not in the starting lineup for the 17h time in the last 18 games. . SS Jordy Mercer (right forearm discomfort) did not start for a third consecutive game.UP NEXTNationals: Rookie RHP A.J. Cole (1-2, 4.68 ERA) will start Sunday in the finale of the three-game series.Pirates: RHP Tyler Glasnow (0-2, 4.11) will make his third career start and first since July 23. The rookie was placed on the disabled list the following day with shoulder inflammation and has made three relief appearances since being activated Aug. 28. ' ' '