Murphy’s 3 hits, 3 RBIs lead Nats in Philly

PHILADELPHIA — Daniel Murphy continued his scorching-hot month of May by collecting three hits, including the go-ahead two-run single in the eighth to lead the Nationals to a 4-3 comeback victory against the Phillies on Monday at Citizens Bank Park.

Murphy also hit a solo home run in the fourth to collect three RBIs on the night, while raising his Major League-leading batting average to .395 as the Nationals snapped a four-game losing streak to the Phillies.

Philadelphia right-hander Jeremy Hellickson, who tossed seven shutout innings on April 27 at Nationals Park, had shut the Nationals down again through seven innings of one-run ball. He only allowed three hits — two of which were to Murphy — with eight strikeouts, and even drove in a run on a sacrifice bunt in the second.

Phillies shortstop Freddy Galvis hit a solo homer in the sixth to give Philadelphia a 2-1 advantage. The Nationals then rallied for a three-run eighth inning off Phillies reliever Hector Neris, handing him his first blown save of the year after a run-scoring double from Jayson Werth and the go-ahead hit by Murphy.

The Nationals received a scare in the seventh inning when Bryce Harper was forced out of the game after being hit in the right knee by a pitch from Hellickson.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Murphy stays red-hot: The Nationals’ signing of Murphy has been one of the biggest free-agent moves from the offseason. He collected …

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