Washington @ Philadelphia preview

Last Meeting ( May 31, 2016 ) Washington 5, Philadelphia 1

Max Scherzer is unbeaten in six starts against Philadelphia since his trade to the National League and will look to complete a three-game sweep for the visiting Washington Nationals in Wednesday's series finale against the skidding Phillies. The Nationals belted four home runs in Tuesday's 5-1 win, sending Philadelphia to its fifth straight defeat.

Scherzer is 4-0 with a 1.88 ERA against the Phillies since joining the Nationals, who have won three in a row despite the absence of Bryce Harper on Tuesday due to a right knee contusion. Daniel Murphy homered in his 26th multi-hit performance of the season to boost his batting average to .397 entering June. Philadelphia, the lowest-scoring team in the majors, has pushed across only nine runs during its slide to drop back to the .500 mark for the first time since April 26. Adam Morgan, who owns a 6.67 ERA, will make his first start against Washington.

TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, MASN2 (Washington), CSN Philadelphia

PITCHING MATCHUP: Nationals RH Max Scherzer (5-4, 4.05 ERA) vs. Phillies LH Adam Morgan (1-3, 6.67)

Although Scherzer allowed only three hits in his last outing, one was a grand slam in a 6-2 setback against St. Louis as he continued a trend of alternating wins and losses over his last six starts. Scherzer won at Philadelphia on April 16 with seven innings of one-run ball while settling for a no-decision 10 days later versus the Phillies after giving up three runs in six frames. Ryan Howard and Maikel Franco are a combined 2-for-30 against Scherzer.

Morgan could be pitching his way out of the rotation as he was tagged for six runs and eight hits, including three homers, in four-plus innings against the Chicago Cubs last time out. It was the third consecutive losing start for the 26-year-old Morgan, who has a total of 11 strikeouts in his last five turns after recording seven in his season debut. Morgan is 0-2 with a bloated 7.36 ERA in three starts this season at Citizens Bank Park.

WALK-OFFS

1. Nationals SS Danny Espinosa has homered three times in his last six games.

2. Franco is 1-for-15 over his last four contests.

3. Nationals INF Stephen Drew's inside-the-park homer was the team's eighth pinch-hit shot - three more than it recorded in 2015.

PREDICTION: Nationals 6, Phillies 2