Phillies Notch Series Win Thanks to Long Ball, Strong Outing from Luzardo
Kevin Sousa/Imagn Images
The Phillies pitched well and hit even better in this game, winning this game 7-4, taking another series win. This win gives the Phillies a 28-12 record since Don Mattingly took over, with the team taking 10 of the first 13 series with him at the helm.
Coming into the rubber match of this series, and to get a series win, they would have to go through a familiar opponent, an opponent who has owned the Phils in the matchup history, Max Scherzer. Against the Phils in his career, he’s 18-5 with a 2.58 ERA and 250 strikeouts.
Bryce Harper got the scoring started early against Scherzer with a solo home run in the first. In the top of the third inning, Alec Bohm hit a three-run home run off of Scherzer, making the game 4-0. In the next inning, after John Schneider lifted Scherzer, Kyle Schwarber deposited his 24th home run to give the Phils a 6-0 lead. In the sixth inning, the Jays scored a run on an RBI single by Brandon Valenzuela. The Phils got that run back in the top of the next inning when Bryson Stott singled home Harper. In the bottom of the inning the Jays stormed back for three runs off of the Phillies bullpen making the game 7-4. After this the bullpen tightened up and the game ended at 7-4.
Phillies Long Ball Dominates Toronto
The Phillies offensive blueprint was on full display in this series closeout game. The scoring got started early when Harper took a center-cut fastball and hit an opposite field home run, into the Blue Jays bullpen. When Harper hits home runs to left, it’s a great sign he’s locked in.
In the third inning, with two runners on after Harper legged out a fielder’s choice, Alec Bohm made Scherzer pay with a long home run into the second deck in left field. Schwarber added on two more on a long home run in the next inning.
When the Phils’ offense is at its best is when they get runners on base in front of the power hitters. The fact that the first six of the Phillies runs came courtesy of the long ball, and two of them were multi-run home runs because the Phillies battled at the plate and got runners on. When they press for home runs, they swing at bad pitches and the opposite happens. Good to see the philosophy working, and helping to get the team right once again.
Luzardo Locks In to Set the Tone In the Win
Jesus Luzardo needed a bounce back game after his rough start against the Chicago White Sox. In that game he went six innings, but gave up five earned runs and only struck out two in the game. In this game he only went 5.2 innings, allowing an earned run, but he also struck out eight over that time. Even though he didn’t close out the inning, this was the bounce back he needed for his confidence and to build some momentum moving forward.
The reason for his success in this game was due to one simple thing – he was able to throw his sweeper for a strike. While his control wained as the game went on, leading to him having a higher pitch count and him having a shorter outing than he would have liked, he used that pitch to set up his fastball and sinker. Luzardo threw the sweeper and the fastball in almost equal numbers and that is a great sign for him. Since his control has been an issue in the games he hasn’t pitched well, there is still room for improvement, but this is a really good step in the right direction for Luzardo.
Phillies Bullpen makes the Game More Interesting Than it Needed to Be
When Luzardo left the game, Jonathan Bowlan closed out the sixth with no drama. In the next inning, Chase Shugart came in and gave up three earned runs including walking home a run. He was only credited with 1/3 of an inning, and only gave up one hit, but walked three in that time, and gave up a sacrifice fly that Adolis Garcia appeared to hurt his arm on. He was grabbing at his tricep after the throw and had to come out of the game. Shugart’s control was just not there from the beginning, and he never found it. Thankfully Brad Keller came in to stop thee bleeding and Jose Alvarado pitched a clean eighth.
On the heels of his first blown save of the season Jhoan Duran came in the ninth on a mission of redemption. He has never in his career blown back-to-back saves, and the first pitch that George Springer saw, he sprayed into right field for a hit, followed by Vladamir Guererro Jr. erasing him on the next pitch. Just to keep things interesting Miles Straw singled on a flare that skimmed off the glove of Trea Turner. The very next batter, Kazuma Okamoto saw three pitches with the last being an ABS challenged call by J.T. Realmuto, which ended the game in the most anticlimactic of ways. The game ended without incident, which is just what the Phils needed after losing the day before in such an unorthodox way. This is the energy the Phillies needed to take into the off-day before going to take on the Milwaukee Brewers, one of the best teams in the National League this season.
Steve Hamilton
Steve may have been born in California, but don’t let that fool you. After dating a local woman and clashing with her and her family over sports for decades, he has an affinity for Philly sports. Balancing love for Philly and Bay Area sports teams may seem impossible, we can all agree that the Cowboys are the true evil.
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