Wheeler recovers, Castellanos hits 5 as Phillies slam D-backs

Wheeler recovers, Castellanos hits 5 as Phillies hit D-backs originally appeared in NBC Sports Philadelphia

The first pitch Diamondbacks starter Tommy Henry threw on Saturday was a fastball, up and in, to Kyle Schwarber.

The second pitch was another fastball, not as high but considerably farther in, and it hit the Phillies’ leadoff hitter. He dropped the bat and trotted to first.

The headlines from an oppressively hot late afternoon at Citizens Bank Park were obvious.

Zack Wheeler bounces back from one of his worst starts ever, holds Arizona to one run on two hits and no walks in seven dominant innings!

Nick Castellanos drives in five runs and Bryce Harper three; Four home runs take Phils to 12-1!

Just beneath the surface, however, a question lurked. Was Schwarber hit by a pitch for the first time this year just one of those things that happen every now and then? Or did it have something to do with the fact that Phillies pitchers had struck out three Arizona hitters the night before?

The old school answer is easy. A Phillies hitter reportedly hit a pitch to send a message that the D-Backs would not serve as live shooting gallery targets. Then the case would be considered closed. Phillies manager Rob Thomson, who began his professional career nearly 40 years ago, swore that thought never crossed his mind.

“No way,” he said. “I don’t think they wanted to hit Schwarber early in the game. I don’t think it was intentional, I don’t think (Friday) was intentional.”

Maybe that’s how the game is played these days. Just a postscript: Wheeler homered for the Diamondbacks’ cleanup Christian Walker in the leadoff of the fifth. Arizona reliever Scott McGough came back and drilled Edmundo Sosa in the bottom of the inning, literally knocking him out of the game with a left elbow contusion. The x-rays were negative and Sosa is listed daily. So we’ll see what happens next, if anything.

In the big picture, at least in one game, the Phillies displayed the kind of pitching/hitting prowess that came almost every night while winning 29 of 35 from April 15 to May 23.

Wheeler has been one of baseball’s most reliable starters since arriving in Philadelphia in 2020. That’s why it came as such a shock when he was pummeled in Baltimore last Sunday, giving up eight earned runs on nine hits, including a career-high four home runs. , in 4.1 innings.

Even after all these years, he still uses rare bad outings to cheer himself up. “Absolutely,” he said. “You try to use anything as motivation. It was a bad start last time. So you try to take some things away from that, but also move on and turn the page.”

They asked him exactly what he got out of it.

“Don’t let that happen again,” he replied with a laugh.

Wheeler didn’t allow his first base runner until he hit Walker with a pitch leading off the fifth. Heck, he didn’t allow a ball to be hit out of the infield until Jake McCarthy followed with a clean single to right. His earned run average is now 2.73.

(It’s doubtful that Wheeler attacked Walker on purpose. Not with a perfect game in place and the debt, if any, apparently paid off. Then again, the Phillies already had a 6-0 lead at that point and Wheeler seems like the type to guy who would put the team first if he thought it needed to be done.)

Harper, Alec Bohm, Castellanos and David Dahl scored as the Phillies scored the most runs in a game since scoring two touchdowns against the Giants on May 4. May 15 vs. the Mets.

Dahl’s home run came in the eighth behind Tucker Barnhart, normally a catcher, who threw his eephus pitch to help save the bullpen.

NOTABLE: Temperature at first pitch was 97 degrees… With Saturday’s win, the Phillies became the second club to reach 50 wins this season, joining the Yankees… They have won 26 of their last 31 at home … Since center fielder Johan Rojas was signed from Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Monday, the Phillies have deployed some unusual defensive alignments to help get the best matchups possible in the lineup. Kyle Schwarber, normally the designated hitter, started in left field for just the second time this year on Saturday, which allowed Rob Thomson to put Alec Bohm at DH and keep Sosa’s bat in the lineup at third, where he started for just the fourth time this season. year… Friday night Sosa took second for the fourth time this year against left-hander Jordan Montgomery, allowing Thomson to keep four left-handed bats on the bench: Bryson Stott, Brandon Marsh, David Dahl and Garrett Stubbs… Define your alarm and prepare coffee. It will be Diamondbacks RHP Slade Cecconi (2-5, 5.90) ​​against LHP Cristopher Sanchez in a rare 11:35 a.m. start for Sunday’s series finale.

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