After an extra inning walk-off in game 1, the Phillies looked to guarantee at least a series win in game 2.
Ranger Suarez continued the hot start to his season. In the 1st, he went 3 up 3 down against the Rockies.
On Monday night, the Phillies only need 2 runs in 10 innings to secure the win. JT Realmuto supplied that in the 1st inning on his 3rd homer of the season. Trea Turner scored after getting on with an error by the Rockies’ shortstop Ezequiel Tovar.
Suarez Settles In
In the second, Ranger Suarez allowed a leadoff single but got some good fielding behind him. Bryce Harper cut down the lead runner on a ground out for out 1 and Ranger initiated a double play to end the inning, 1-4-3.
Ranger continued his excellent start in the 3rd. He only needed 6 pitches to work throught the bottom of the Rockies’ order, recording his 2nd strikeout in the process. He needed only 25 pitches to get through the 3 innings of work.
He kept the good pitching rolling in the 4th. He struck out both Charlie Blackman and Ryan McMahon. While he allowed his first walk of the day, his pitch count remained low at 44 pitches.
Twelve more pitches is all it took for Ranger to continue to cruise through the 5th inning. He picked up his 5th K of the night against Michael Toglia.
Ranger finally faced some adversity in the 6th inning. Alan Trejo led off with a single and advanced to 2nd, giving the Rockies theri 1st RiSP of the night. After striking out Tovar, Ranger allowed an infield single to McMahon. Luckily for the Phils, Trejo went too far around 3rd and was tagged out by Alec Bohm at 3rd.
Phillies Strike Again
The Phillies got the offense going again in the 6th. Back-to-back doubles from Turner and Harper pushed the lead to 3-0, knocking Austin Gomber out of the game. Victor Vodnik would enter with 1 out and Harper at 2nd. Vodnik would end the Phillies threat with back-to-back backwards Ks at 99 MPH.
In the 7th, Ranger got a helping hand from Brandon Marsh. With 2 outs, Elehuris Montero lined a ball off the left field wall. Marsh cut it off quickly and lauched a bullet to 2nd, Stott made the tag to end the inning. It was the first time Ranger Suarez had gone 7+ IP since June 27th of last season against the Cubs.
A 1-2-3 8th inning gave Ranger Suarez his longest start since his shutout of the Pirates on September 25th of 2021. At just 89 pitches, he’d be back out for the 9th.
Before that, Bryce Harper interjected in a loud way with a 2-run homer. Rojas scored, walking to start the inning. The 3 RBI on the day gave Harper 900 for his career.
Ready for Ranger
The crowd gave Ranger a loud round of applause as he took the mound for the 9th. He’d have to get through the top of the Rockies order to finish the shutout. The task got a tad harder as Charlie Blackman singled to leadoff the inning. Tovar would be Ranger’s 7th strikeout victim for the 1st out. Ryan McMahon also singled to put runners on 1st and 2nd. On a full count, Ranger got a swing and a miss from Elias Diaz for the 2nd out.
In the most Ranger way possible, he got the shutout. A grounder fielded by himself thrown over to Harper at first. It was Ranger’s 2nd career shutout. The game took just 2 hours and 7 minutes. It was the Phillies’ first complete game shutout since Michael Lorenzen’s no-hitter.
The 5-0 win pushes the Phillies to 10-8 on the season.
Photo Credit: (AP Photo/Derik Hamilton)
