With another series win in the books, the Philadelphia Phillies are off to New York to face the Mets on Monday. But the weekend spent playing another NL East rival in the Miami Marlins gave us some takeaways about this Phillies team at the moment.
The Phillies continued their winning ways against weaker opponents, putting up 22 runs in the three-game series. The Phils followed Friday's 8-2 throttling with an 8-3 win on Saturday and then capped the weekend with a comeback that fell short in an extra-innings 7-6 loss on Mother's Day Sunday.
Marlins 7, Phillies 6 in 10 innings
— Todd Zolecki (@ToddZolecki) May 12, 2024
Zack Wheeler wasn't himself today, allowing six runs in four innings. Phillies tied the game in the sixth, but couldn't get the big hit late. A ball deflects off Gregory Soto's backside and into the outfield to score Miami's winning run.
3 takeaways from the Phillies' weekend series win against the Marlins
The Phillies leave Miami with a 28-13 record and a lead of 1.5 games in the division over the Atlanta Braves. The Marlins are now 17.5 games back in the basement of the NL East.
Apart from another series win and a first-place team, what else can we take away from this Phillies weekend at loanDepot Park?
From Taijuan Walker’s start to Bryson Stott’s announcement that he’s back, to some weird and wacky lineups, here's what we saw.
Taijuan Walker is fitting nicely in the rotation
There was plenty of consternation over Taijuan Walker’s return to the rotation two weeks ago. We can probably relax a little now, after the right-hander’s performance in Saturday’s win.
His first two starts were marred by seventh-inning problems, leading to most of his 6.39 ERA heading into the weekend. Phillies manager Rob Thomson didn’t let Walker sniff the seventh inning against the Marlins — a decision likely helped by his 86 pitches through six.
Aside from a fifth-inning solo home run, Walker kept Miami off the scoreboard, scattering eight hits with fours strikeouts and one walk. The start lowered his ERA to 4.82 as he picked up his third win.