WASHINGTON -- Many Nationals fans took to the internet this spring clamoring for shortstop prospect Trea Turner to be called up from Triple-A to start for Washington.

That crescendo built up last weekend as Turner went 3-for-3 against the Reds in Cincinnati.

But veteran Danny Espinosa, now the everyday shortstop for the Nationals, remains undeterred. The switch-hitter homered for the seventh time in 14 games and lifted his average to .214 with three hits as Washington came back from a 4-0 deficit to beat the Philadelphia Phillies 9-6 Friday.

"I am making solid contact. I am feeling comfortable up there," said Espinosa, who played mostly second base last year. "I just need to continue to stay with my work and my approach."

It was the second three-hit game over the last three contests for Espinosa, drafted in the third round by the Nationals in 2008.

"He works hard. He is determined, also," manager Dusty Baker said. "He made some (great) plays at shortstop, too."

Third baseman Stephen Drew had two hits, including a homer, and two RBIs and second baseman Daniel Murphy had two doubles and three RBIs. Drew had an inside-the-park homer May 31 in Philadelphia and homered on Thursday in Chicago against the White Sox.

"We knew his track record," Baker said of Drew. "He works hard, he stays ready. I will find a way to get him in there. He is one of the most popular guys on the team. He is a veteran who has been there before. He has been on championship teams."

The three infielders combined for seven hits, including two homers, and six RBIs.

"He had always had the same approach to the game," starter Stephen Strasburg said of Espinosa, a fellow Californian.

Strasburg (10-0) allowed five hits and four runs with 10 strikeouts and one walk in seven innings. The 2009 overall first pick in the draft has won 13 decisions in a row dating to last year. He retired the last 14 batters he faced despite the early deficit.

"I just kept focusing on execution," said Strasburg, who gave up four runs in the first three innings. "I wasn't going to change my approach."

Baker agreed.

"He got very determined not to give up any more," Baker said. "Deuces were wild tonight" as Washington scored two runs in an inning four times."

The Phillies thought they had Strasburg on the ropes.

"We started off pretty nice," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "Here's a darn good pitcher, we scored four runs off him, and we just couldn't hold onto the lead. Here's one of those time when our hitting came around a little bit and our pitching let us down."

The first-place Nationals have scored 41 runs in their last five games. Tommy Joseph had two homers and four RBIs for the Phillies in the first multi-homer game of his career. His two-run shot in the eighth off Felipe Rivero cut the lead to 9-6.

"But you can't say enough about Tommy Joseph. He looks like the real deal, and it's great to have him here," Mackanin said, adding that Joseph is now the regular first baseman over veteran and slumping Ryan Howard.

Espinosa hit his 10th homer of the season -- a solo blast off starter Jeremy Hellickson -- to give the Nationals a 7-4 lead in the sixth. Murphy had his second double in the seventh to drive in a run and build the margin to 8-4, and Drew had an RBI double to make it 9-4.

Hellickson (4-4) gave up nine hits, including three homers, and seven earned runs in six innings. Luis Garcia, a former Washington minor leaguer, took over in the seventh for the Phillies and gave up two runs.

Ben Revere had two hits and scored twice for the Nationals, who were coming off a three-city, nine-game road trip that lasted 11 days.

The Nationals (37-24) had lost six of their previous nine home games. The Phillies (29-32) have lost eight of their last 11.

Jonathan Papelbon pitched the ninth for the Nationals to get his 16th save of the season.

The Phillies took a 2-0 lead in the second on an RBI single by Cody Asche and a bunt single by Tyler Goeddel that plated Freddy Galvis, who singled in the middle of the rally.

Joseph hit his sixth homer of the year, a two-run shot off Strasburg in the third, to build the margin to 4-0.

But the Nationals got two runs back in the last of the third as Jayson Werth had a two-run double off his former team to make the score 4-2. He drove in Espinosa and Revere, who had each singled.

Washington got back-to-back homers in the fourth by Wilson Ramos and Drew to make it 4-4 off Hellickson.

"It's a good lineup. I made way too many mistakes, and they didn't miss a lot of them. ... The biggest thing was just falling behind. Command wasn't good, especially early in the counts," Hellickson said. "The guys spot me a 4-0 lead in the third inning, I've got to make that stand. This loss is definitely on me."

NOTES: Phillies RHP Vince Velasquez (right biceps soreness) was put on the 15-day disabled list Friday on the heels of leaving his start on Wednesday after just two pitches. Velasquez is 5-2 with a 3.65 ERA in 12 starts this season. ... The Phillies recalled RHP Luis Garcia from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to take the place of Velasquez. ... The Phillies swept a three-game series in Washington in late April by a combined score of 10-3. ... The teams will meet Saturday, with Washington RHP Tanner Roark (4-4, 3.21) facing Phillies RHP Aaron Nola (5-4, 2.65). ... Phillies manager Pete Mackanin was excited about the acquiring top overall draft selection OF Mickey Moniak on Thursday. "He looks like he has a great swing," Mackanin said of the California high schooler. ... SS Carter Kieboom, a high schooler from Georgia, said in a conference call Friday he hopes to decide by Saturday if he plans to sign with the Nationals or head to college at Clemson. Kieboom was the 28th overall pick by the Nationals Thursday and is the younger brother of C Spence Kieboom, who is at Double-A Harrisburg in the Washington system.