BASEBALL: Andrew Painter fans 8 in MLB debut as Phillies edge Nationals

Andrew Painter struck out eight batters over 5 1/3 innings in his major league debut, leading the Philadelphia Phillies to a 3-2 victory over the visiting Washington Nationals on Tuesday.

The Phillies’ top pitching prospect, Painter (1-0), allowed just one run, four hits, and a walk against a Nationals team that entered the game as the majors’ top-scoring club. Kyle Schwarber and Adolis Garcia each hit home runs for Philadelphia, which had dropped three of its first four games.

For Washington, Daylen Lile recorded three hits in the loss. James Wood came up with the tying run on second base with two outs in the ninth, but Brandon Marsh tracked down his liner in deep left field to secure the win for the Phillies.

Philadelphia struck early, scoring in the third, fourth, and fifth innings off Zack Littell to give Painter a 3-0 cushion.

In the third inning, Schwarber hit a two-out home run to the second deck.

Garcia followed with an opposite-field homer in the fourth, his first since joining the Phillies.

Later in the fourth, Justin Crawford singled and eventually scored on an error by Luis Garcia Jr.

Painter was in command throughout his first major league start. He retired Washington in order in the first inning and navigated back-to-back singles to start the second. After a clean third inning, he allowed a one-out double to Lile in the fourth before striking out the next two batters.

The Phillies left-hander struck out three more in the fifth, prompting manager Rob Thomson to send him out for the sixth. Painter gave up a one-out single to CJ Abrams before exiting to a standing ovation. Abrams later scored on Lile’s single and a throwing error by Garcia, cutting Philadelphia’s lead to 3-2.

Washington came close to tying in the seventh when Wood hit a two-out RBI double. Brad Keller pitched the eighth for the Phillies, and Jhoan Duran closed the ninth to earn his second save.

For the Nationals, opener PJ Poulin delivered a scoreless first inning, while Littell (0-1) worked five innings, allowing three runs on six hits and two walks.

—Field Level Media/Reuters