It didn’t take Philadelphia long to fall for Luis Arraez. Three pitches. Tops. Playing in his first game with his new club, Arraez led the Phillies to a 5-0 win over the Washington Nationals at Citizens Bank Park on Tuesday night. Lefty Jesus Luzardo pitched eight shutout innings. Acquire d from the San Francisco Giants at Monday’s trade deadline, Arraez drove home the Phillies’ first run of the night with a first-inning RBI single to center on the third pitch he saw. He drove home the team’s second run of the night with an RBI double to right, capping an eight-pitch at-bat in the third inning. Arraez is a three-time batting champion and leads the National League with a .325 batting average this season. He is not a power hitter. Manager Don Mattingly wrestled with the construction of his lineup, finally deciding to go against the book and hit Arraez cleanup. “You figure he’s coming up with men on base and it doesn’t take a homer to drive in a run,” Mattingly said before the game. “A base hit drives in a run from second base.” Mattingly’s reasoning proved to be prescient. In both of his first two at-bats, Arraez came to the plate with runners on first and second. Both times, he delivered. And the crowd of 38,731 loved it. “I was excited,” Arraez said. “I was happy, especially when the fans gave me that ovation. That was beautiful. I was happy and thankful to the fans for giving me the energy. “That’s why I’m here — to enjoy the game and to try to do something special for the guys and the fans.” The fans also loved the way Luzardo pitched and the way the Phils’ new defensive alignment performed. Luzardo pitched his best game of the season, blanking the Nats on four hits and two walks over his season-high eight innings. He struck out seven. “Luzardo is nasty,” said Arraez, who had a nice view of it all from second base. Bryce Harper, returning to right field for the first time since 2022, was tested on the first pitch of the game. He backpedaled and caught Dylan Crews’ fly ball. Harper also caught three other fly balls. No problem. Harper had some fun with the fans in the right field seats. He brought back his pre-game bow to the fans and they loved it. “A guy told me he wanted a latte,” America’s favorite barista said. “That was pretty good.” Bryson Stott, playing third base for the first time since early 2022, handled a hot smash to end the top of the seventh. Maybe the strong defense was contagious. Shortstop Trea Turner, who has struggled at the position, made four plays. One was a nice diving play up the middle. One was on a hard-hit ball in the sixth. His throws to first base were crisp and delivered with discernible confidence. Turner, batting second behind Kyle Schwarber, also stroked three hits and scored two runs. Simply put, the Phils looked like a sharp, efficient ballclub in getting the job done. Arraez, known for his high batting average, his bat-to-ball skills and his energy, seemed to rub off on everyone. “His energy is infectious,” Mattingly said. “You love guys that play like that. That’s just his personality. Anywhere I’ve seen him in the past, it looks the same. It’s always energy and it’s important.” Luzardo sensed the energy in the ballpark from the time Arraez took the field at second base. “You could notice it,” he said. “It felt like a breath of fresh air.” “Luis didn’t waste any time,” Harper said. “That’s why he’s here. He brings emotion and fire. We’ve seen him from afar. It’s exciting to have him on our side. It was a great day for the Phillies.” Arraez came to the Phillies along with reliever Caleb Kilian. The right-hander also made his Phillies’ debut with a scoreless ninth inning to close the shutout. Luzardo has made 144 starts in his career. Never has he gone nine innings or pitched a shutout. He did a little politicking to stay in the game after the eighth inning, but with a thin starting pitching staff and lots of baseball remaining, Mattingly pulled the valuable left-hander at 98 pitches. Even Luzardo admitted it was the right move. “I understand it,” he said. “It’s not my call. I definitely wanted the complete game and shutout. I look forward to it one day, but today wasn’t the day. I was shut down.” The Phillies lost 10 of their first 13 games after the All-Star break, but appear to have righted themselves with four straight wins. They remain in control of one of the National League’s three wild-card playoff spots as they send rookie Andrew Painter to the mound Wednesday night. Phillies management did not add a starting pitcher at the trade deadline and is rolling the dice that Painter can hold down the fifth starter’s job that he lost in June. He returned from the minors last week and tossed six innings of two-run ball at Baltimore. The Phils will be looking for similar success Wednesday night. ...read more read less