Stay for a Nightcap! Phils Vs. Rain and Nats

Meet Prez... Check. Beat inferior team in extras... Check. Take game one of a day-night double-header... Yep. Pretty standard trip-to-DC stuff really. Why not keep it going with a win in the nightcap? A line of thunderstorms is about to pound the east coast, and Scott Lauber says the tarp is on the field in DC as of 5:15 PM. However, there's a decent chance it will move through by gametime.

I was down at the Italian Market Festival for most of the first game, but I hear tell that Raw Ibanez knocked two more out of the park, increasing his hot start to 12 homers on the season. I'll admit I thought he'd probably cool off by now, but all indications are that this could be an outstanding season for the Phils' new left fielder. With warmer weather on the way, power numbers around the league will trend up. It's hard to believe Ibanez could do much better than he is, but I think it's increasingly likely he'll outperform even the best estimates for his production in Philly.

Brett Myers also had a damn fine line, something the Phils needed pretty badly out of their #2 man. Brad Lidge stopped giving up runs, at least for the time being, but Ryan Madson had a rare poor outing, allowing three earned. Tonight, the Phils will send Andrew Carpenter to the hill to help keep the rotation on schedule despite the doubledip. Luckily for Carpenter, he gets to face an absolutely terrible team playing their second game of the day. He also squares off against Daniel Cabrera, who has been kinda shitty so far this season. He's 0-4 with a WHIP of 1.98. Cabrera's been hurt by the walks, but he's kept opposing hitters in the park (two homers against). After hitting three home runs in the day game, whichever Phils aren't getting rested tonight will be looking to tee off.

Hopefully the rain holds out and the Phils fans who made the trek down will get to see another game win tonight. The Nats could use the box office support. Here's a shot of section 104 a little before this afternoon's game.