Sunday Scaries Continue as Phillies Fall to Yankees in Finale
Jul 27, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto (10) tags out New York Yankees outfielder Cody Bellinger (35) at home plate during the third inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images
Another sweep-Sunday arrived for the Phillies, and it was yet another missed opportunity to gain ground in the division race with Zack Wheeler on the mound.
The Phillies now have a 9-10 record on Sundays in 2025 after their 4-3 loss this afternoon, and were unable to finish off what would have been their first-ever sweep at Yankee Stadium.
This getaway Sunday started out well. Kyle Schwarber had some fun in left field, Otto Kemp launched two solo blasts, and “trade-candidate” Nick Castellanos got a solo home run of his own. Wheeler, however, didn’t have his best command, at least in one inning, but managed to get 8 punch-outs and give 5.2 innings.
Wheeler, who leads the league in quality starts, has been the best pitcher in the rotation and maybe even the best pitcher in the National League — though he’s been historically bad in Yankee Stadium. Coming into today, he had a 7.20 ERA, and those numbers showed today as Wheeler struggled in the second.
Entering the second inning, Wheels had a 2-0 lead to work with thanks to Castellanos and Kemp. Wheeler hit back-to-back batters to load the bases with no outs and gave up a double to newly-acquired Ryan McMahon.
McMahon hit one hard down the right field line; it may have been a play Bryce Harper could have made, but it leaked through and scored two.
The Yankees tacked on two more but wouldn’t score against Wheeler the rest of the game, of course, with the help of a spectacular play by Johan Rojas and J.T. Realmuto.
It wasn’t Wheeler’s best outing, and his Cy Young case was not helped, but on the other hand, Carlos Rodon didn’t throw a gem for his team.
Rodon, who has allowed a .512 OPS against lefties this season, took the mound against a modified Phillies lineup.
It was stacked with righties — even Weston Wilson was a starter.
And it was, of course, the Phillies’ right-handers that got to Rodon. One in particular: Otto Kemp.
Kemp had his first multi-home run game today, launching two solo blasts which followed Castellanos’ solo bomb in the first. Castellanos, who has been a rumored in trades with the Royals, has been the only power bat in the outfield, and he proved it today with his blast.
However, outside of the solo blasts, the Phillies’ offense was stagnant. They threatened in the fourth, but a poor at-bat from Rojas killed any momentum.
The Yankees’ bullpen had finally held up in this series, and they shut the Phils down for the rest of the night. Kemp got the opportunity to play hero-ball with the last at-bat of the game, but fell to a Devin Williams changeup to finish up the series.
Though Sunday did not go as planned, the Phillies still got to start their road trip with a series win against a playoff-caliber team. The Yankees may not be at their best, but the Phillies handled them well.
They will travel to Chicago to take on the bottom-feeder White Sox for a three-game stint and maybe even bring back to Philadelphia a certain White Sox center fielder.
Sean Regenye
Sean Regenye is a sophomore broadcast journalism major at Penn State University. He is a die-hard Philly sports fan and loves baseball, especially the Phillies.
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