Taking advantage of the opportunity, Phillips helps Phillies skid and avoid sweeps originally appeared in NBC Sports Philadelphia
PITTSBURGH — When you think of a stopper, you don’t think of an unknown rookie making his second career start, but Tyler Phillips stepped into the role admirably on Sunday afternoon to keep the Phillies from getting swept.
Phillips held the Pirates scoreless through six innings to win their second straight game.
The Phillies won 6-0, snapping a three-game losing streak. This weekend was the first time they lost the first two games of a series since Games 1 and 2 of the season, and they still haven’t been eliminated. The 100th game of the season is Monday at Minnesota and the Phils will enter with a 63-36 record.
Phillies manager Rob Thomson admitted Sunday morning that he was pleasantly surprised by what Phillips has accomplished so far. Phillips’ slider has been an effective pitch and his sinker has averaged more than 1 mph more than in the minors, perhaps because of the extra adrenaline at this level.
“I have a job to do,” Phillips said. “You get there and every game is important here. I think I just go out there and I’m in full competition mode. I end up getting a win, but I don’t play for personal statistics, I play to try with the ultimate goal of being able to win a World Cup.” Series.”
The fifth spot in the Phillies rotation will belong to Phillips for now. Thomson said Sunday morning that he’s pitched well enough so far that a stumble on Sunday wouldn’t cost him his spot, and he certainly didn’t stumble.
“He goes after hitters and throws strikes,” Thomson said. “With the things he has, he’s going to get people out of there.”
Taijuan Walker will throw a bullpen session in Minnesota and is scheduled to take live batting practice next weekend at home, but he is unlikely to return to the rotation until mid-August, meaning Phillips should throw at least four more or five laps.
“The guys didn’t see me,” Phillips said. “I just have to go out there and throw shots and trust the preparation I’ve done all week.”
In 16 major league innings, Phillips allowed five runs with 15 strikeouts and just one walk. Thomson talks often about trying to get pitchers out of the game on a positive note, and he could have pulled Phillips after five efficient innings because the most dangerous part of the Pirates’ order was slated for the sixth for the third time, with three lefties among the first four hitters. .
But Phillips made his best inning of the day when it mattered most, retiring Bryan Reynolds, Oneil Cruz and Nick Gonzales 1-2-3 for a two-run lead.
“I thought he had the game under control,” Thomson said. “Very low pitch count, he was throwing strikes, the stuff was good. He had a good sinker all day. The slider or slurve was very good. There wasn’t a lot of hard contact. I thought he was in command.”
The Phillies made hard contact in the first inning against veteran lefty Marco Gonzales, but had nothing to show for it. Kyle Schwarber hit a lineout to left-center and was robbed at the wall by Joshua Palacios. Bryce Harper narrowly missed a home run two batters later when he hit a ball in front of the wall in right center.
The second inning was more fruitful. Alec Bohm led off with a single, advanced to third on a double by Edmundo Sosa and both scored when Weston Wilson and Garrett Stubbs followed with a sacrifice fly and an RBI single.
The Phillies added three unearned insurance runs in the top of the seventh with a Trea Turner RBI single, Harper RBI groundout and Alec Bohm RBI single. Cruz opened the door by dropping a ball at second base in his rush to turn a double play, allowing Stubbs and Schwarber to reach safely. Both scored, as did Turner. It could have easily been a scoreless inning if Cruz didn’t try to do too much.
Yunior Marte, Jose Alvarado and Jose Ruiz completed the victory in six races. Alvarado bounced back with a scoreless eighth inning against the same hitters who hurt him on Friday. Andrew McCutchen appeared and eliminated Bryan Reynolds and Cruz.
“It was a lower leverage situation and that was as good as I’ve seen it in a while,” Thomson said.
The Phils now head to Minnesota, where they will start Ranger Suarez, Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola. The Twins will be without their best hitter, Carlos Correa, who was placed on the injured list after the All-Star break with plantar fasciitis.
“We did a lot of little things well today,” Thomson said. “It was big. We needed to get back on the winning side. I think this makes everyone feel good and we’ll have a happy flight and go to Minnesota and start all over again.”
