The first meeting between the class of the National League pitted Zack Wheeler against youngster Bobby Miller. Wheeler came into the game looking for his 10th win this season for the Phillies and to continue a potential Cy Young caliber season.
Wheels Up
Wheeler came out dealing. He struck out Shohei Ohtani on 3 straight fastballs to start the game. After a Will Smith single, he got Freddie Freeman to ground out weakly to 1st. A Trea Turner throwing error put runners on 1st and 3rd but Wheeler worked out of it with a strikeout against James Outman.
Bobby Miller allowed a single to Trea Turner with 1 out in the bottom of the inning. He induced two grounders to end the inning.
Wheeler only needed 6 pitches to get through the 2nd thanks to his defense behind him. On the first pitch, Bryson Stott made an excellent play from a Bryce Harper deflection to get the out.
Phillies Strike First
In the 2nd, the Phillies worked some 2-out magic. Brandon Marsh started it off by walking and stealing 2nd. Rafael Marchán drove him in with a single down the rightfield line. Johan Rojas blooped a single over Miller’s head that he just beat out. Both advanced on a wild pitch and then Kyle Schwarber drove both in on a long single. He was thrown out at 2nd.
Ohtani won the battle in his second at-bat, looping a single in front of Brandon Marsh. Wheeler got his 1st backward K of the day when Will Smith looked at a sweeper for strike 3. He got his 4th strikeout to end the inning, getting Freeman swinging.
Trea Turner led off the 3rd with a single that probably should’ve been ruled an error on 3rd baseman Cavan Biggio. Alec Bohm walked to give the Phillies another runner-in-scoring position. Miller got back-to-back popouts to end the threat.
Wheeler had an easy inning in the 4th. He struck out the 1st 2 hitters and induced a popup to end the inning.
The Phillies’ offense started to cook again in the bottom of the inning. Marsh logged a single. Marchán dropped a double into left field. And Johan Rojas somehow bounced a ball just over Biggio’s head at 3rd to drive in Marsh. Schwarber walked to load the bases which brought up Trea Turner. Turner blasted a grand slam for his 8th homer of the year, making it 8-0 Phillies. With 2 outs, Bryson Stott hit a homer of his own.
In the 5th, Wheeler ran into some trouble with 2 outs. First, he allowed a solo shot to Biggio to make it 9-1. He then walked Ohtani and Smith. Freddie Freeman grounded out to end the inning.
The Dodgers removed Freeman from the game, bringing in Kiké Hernández to play 3rd and moving Biggio to 1st. Yohan Ramirez replaced Miller in the 5th inning. All of the 9 runs Miller allowed were earned.
Zack Wheeler left the game with left low back tightness. Seranthony Dominguez relieved him in the 6th. Seranthony walked Teoscar Hernandez and hit James Outman to start the inning. He worked through the damage, striking out 2 and getting Miguel Vargas to ground out to end the inning.
Holding the Lead
Soto took the 7th inning for the Phillies. He allowed a walk to Biggio and a single to a pinch-hitting Austin Barnes. After getting back-to-back strikeouts, he walked Chris Taylor to load the bases. He struck out Outman to end the Dodgers’ rally.
Michael Petersen entered the game for the Dodgers in the 7th along with a slew of defensive changes. With 2 outs, Brandon Marsh hit a homer to right to make it 10-1. Marchán added another double to make it a 3-hit night. After Rojas was HBP, confusion broke out as to whether the Dodgers could use Kiké Hernández (a position player) to pitch.
Eventually, he pitched and got Schwarber to pop out. It was his 1st pitching appearance since 2018.
Orion Kerkering came in to pitch on the 8th. Cristian Pache entered the game for Rojas and Whit Merrifield came in for Trea Turner. Hernandez continued to pitch the 8th for the Dodgers. He worked a 1-2-3 inning in the frame.
José Ruiz was tasked with defending a 9-run 9th-inning lead to close things out. Ruiz loaded the bases in the inning but was able to shut the door on the Dodgers. With the win, the Phillies improved to 59-32 on the season.
Photo Credit: (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
