Clowns on Defense: Errors cost Phillies again in huge 7th for Nats

Cole Hamels was charged with four earned runs allowed in a five-run seventh inning for the Nationals.

Two struggling aces took the mound in a Sunday afternoon affair between two division foes. For six innings, the aces put on a show.

There were strikeouts aplenty, weakly hit outs and the innings were flying by.

But was that enough to get Cole Hamels his second win of the season? With this defense? With this offense? Clown question, bro.

Then the circus act that has been the Phillies defense came out in the seventh. That's when another game with a lack of offense downed Hamels again.

The Nationals went on to score five runs a horrendous seventh inning for the Phillies, as they would win the series finale by a score of 6-1.

Both pitchers were dealing, firing six scoreless innings in what was shaping up to be each pitcher's best game of the season. Stephen Strasburg kept it going beyond the sixth, striking out the side in the seventh. Hamels ran into trouble instantly.

Ryan Zimmerman led off the inning with a swinging bunt infield single. Freddy Galvis had flipped to first using his glove, and may have even had Zimmerman out on the play, but the first-base umpire Mark Wegner ruled him safe. Adam LaRoche followed with a single. Ian Desmond bunted the runners into scoring position. Tyler Moore was intentionally walked.

That's when the error show began again. A weak grounder to third by Jhonatan Solano could have saved a run and led to the second out. But with time to make a play, Michael Young spiked the throw in the dirt. It got away from catcher Humberto Quintero, allowing two runs to score.

That set off the Nationals' five-run seventh inning. Two more runs scored on a two-run double by Steve Lombardozzi. Another scored on an RBI double by Denard Span.

The Phillies managed one lonely run off Strasburg on a balk with two outs in the eighth. The Nationals got it right back on an RBI single by Moore off Chad Durbin.

The Phillies fall to 24-26 with the loss and fall two games back of the Nationals in the NL East. They will now head to Boston to begin a four-game series with the Red Sox, the first two games being at Fenway Park. Tyler Cloyd will start against Clay Bucholtz.

Kevin Durso is a contributor for Philliedelphia. You can follow him on twitter @KDursoPhilsNet.