Philadelphia, PA -- (Sports Network) - Jayson Werth hit a go-ahead home run in the eighth inning, lifting the Philadelphia Phillies to a 5-4 win over Washington in the first of three games with the Nationals.

Shane Victorino finished with a triple and double for Philadelphia, which has won three of four. The Phillies got a sacrifice fly each from Greg Dobbs, Geoff Jenkins and Chris Coste to keep pace with the Mets in the NL East. First-place New York downed Atlanta 7-3 on Tuesday, and leads Philadelphia by 1 1/2 games.

Werth's homer made a winner of Ryan Madson (3-1), who pitched a perfect eighth. Brad Lidge worked a perfect ninth to nail down his 31st save of the season in as many opportunities. Phillies starter Joe Blanton allowed four runs on eight hits in five innings of work.

"He stays in our battles," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said of Blanton. "He throws strikes."

Steven Shell (0-1) took the loss after allowing the Werth homer, while Nationals starter Jason Bergmann didn't factor into the decision. He gave up four runs -- three earned -- on six hits in 6 1/3 frames.

Ronnie Belliard went 4-for-4 with a double and run batted in, while Willie Harris finished 2-for-5 with a solo homer for Washington, which outhit the Phillies 11-7 but has lost 11 consecutive games.

Philadelphia trailed, 4-1, after the top of the fifth, but used the bottom half of that inning to get back into the game. Victorino led off with a triple to the gap in left-center field.

Dobbs then lofted a ball to shallow left field, but Harris botched the basket catch as Victorino raced home. After Dobbs stole second and went to third on a Coste single, he scored on Jenkins' sacrifice fly out to left field to bring the Phillies within 4-3.

In the home seventh, Victorino hit into a fielder's choice, then raced around to third on a Dobbs single to center. That ended Bergmann's day as Shell entered. Coste roped a fly out to right field, and Victorino tagged up to tie the game.

Then, with one away in the eighth, Werth slammed a high pitch into the stands in left-center field to put the Phillies ahead. Lidge struck out two in the ninth to seal Philadelphia's win.

Harris hit a one-out solo shot off Blanton to give the Nationals a lead in the first inning.

Philadelphia tied the game in the second. Ryan Howard led off with a single, advanced to third on a Victorino double, and scored on Dobbs' sacrifice fly to left field.

Consecutive singles from Lastings Milledge and Belliard began Washington's fourth frame, and Jesus Flores brought in one run with a single to left. In the fifth, the Nationals tacked on another pair of runs.

Harris got on base with a one-out single and scored when Ryan Zimmerman hit a ball into the right field corner for a triple. Belliard later singled in Zimmerman, giving the Nationals a three-run edge.

Game Notes:

The Nationals have not lost 11 in a row since they were the Montreal Expos, from June 23-July 4, 1991...Werth's homer was his 17th of the season, which is a career high.