Phillies News
The Philadelphia Phillies finished off the Colorado Rockies 9-3 on Sunday afternoon in front of 44,618 fans. It is already the fifth crowd to be at least 43,000 fans this season, two more than last year. The win was the Phillies’ third straight. The offense showed up in the earlier-than-usual day game. Trea Turner hit his first home run at Citizens Bank Park as a Phillie. The ‘Phillies Daycare’ in Bryson Stott, Brandon Marsh, and Alec Bohm led the way as the trio hit a combined 3-for-10, two homers, one double, three RBI, two walks, and one strikeout. The offense as a whole was incredibly efficient as it scored nine runs on eight hits and only left one(!) runner on base.
The pitching from Zack Wheeler was exceptional. Wheeler pitched six innings, gave up three hits, walked three batters, and struck out eleven Rockies’. Wheeler showcased his plus movement and break on his fastball, curveball, sinker, and sweeper. I must’ve forgotten about his sweeper but the combination of his power pitches and the breaks on his curveball as well as his sweeper makes him more dangerous. Wheeler looked like he found a rhythm and groove in this game.
The bullpen slammed the door on the Rockies to win. Gregory Soto was awarded his fifth hold of the season as he pitched one inning, allowed one hit, and struck out one. Jose Alvarado came in to throw an inning, allowing one hit, and struck out two. The scoreless inning lowered Alvarado’s ERA to 0.87. Luis Ortiz finished the game by pitching one inning, allowing two hits, and striking out one.
The win on Sunday bumped the Phillies’ record to 11-12, 3.5 games back of the first-place spot in the NL East and 2 games back of the third and final Wild Card spot. The Phillies have the day off on Monday and will be preparing for the Seattle Mariners who come to Citizens Bank Park from Tuesday to Thursday.
More Phillies News
In other Phillies news, Cristopher Sanchez was optioned to triple-A and Yunior Marter was recalled from the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs. Here’s a little tidbit of injury news to monitor on Zack Wheeler, it doesn’t sound serious but worth keeping in the back of one’s mind. Of course, I had to include the most up-to-date injury updates on Bryce Harper, Ranger Suarez, and Andrew Painter.
Some MLB News
The Pittsburgh Pirates are the hottest team in baseball right now. In Sunday’s win, the Phillies’ old friend Vince Velasquez led the Pirates to a 2-0 win. Velasquez went seven innings and struck out ten. The Pirates are currently on a seven-game winning streak and possess the second best record in baseball at 16-7.
Jacob deGrom looked like his old self in his start at home for the Texas Rangers over the Oakland Athletics. deGrom threw six innings of two-run ball and struck out 11. deGrom and the Rangers win over the A’s pushed the Rangers’ record to 14-7, the fourth-best in baseball.
The Tampa Bay Rays continue their incredibly hot start. In Sunday’s 4-1 home win over the Chicago White Sox, Tampa Bay extended their winning streak at Tropicana Field. The Rays boast the best record in baseball at 19-3, the first time a team has started their season at 19-3 was the 1987 Milwaukee Brewers. The home winning steak is the longest home winning streak in the history of the franchise.