Sunday afternoon was absolutely gorgeous at Citizens Bank Park. Near-perfect weather would act as a precursor of sorts, as Zack Wheeler was nearly perfect on the mound. The beautiful weather almost predicted a beautiful performance from the Phillies’ ace, as Philadelphia took the game 3-1 over Cincinnati, winning their third straight series, and fifth straight at home.
The only way Wheeler could have been more dominant is if he finished the potential perfect game/no-hitter that he flirted with in the early going. Offensive woes didn’t matter in this one, as a clutch hit late was all they needed. Wheeler continued his torrid stretch, and Philly continued its winning ways. Here are notes and quotes from the Phillies’ Sunday victory.
Zack Wheeler does Zack Wheeler things
Phillies manager Rob Thomson has almost seemed bored talking about Wheeler at times. Earlier this season, he once told reporters to simply copy and paste what we wrote about him the last few times – that’s how consistently great he’s been. Well after nine innings of dominating the Reds lineup, he finally had something new to say:
“After the fourth I thought, ‘this has a chance to be a no-hitter or a perfect game’ – I really did,” the Phillies skipper said, confidently. “He was just dominant. I mean, everything working – control, command, I mean everything was great.”
On the telecast, they showed Wheeler walking off the field after the eighth inning – he had just reached 100 pitches and his eleventh strikeout of the game. He didn’t speak to anyone, just went right into the clubhouse to get into the air conditioning. Topper told us he went down there to check on his starter, to make sure he was good. Wheeler told him “I’m good. I’d lie to you, but I’m good.” Thomson felt good taking him out to 115 pitches, so 15 more in the ninth. Wheels only needed eight.
Here’s some cool notes from Wheeler’s dominant outing:
- Wheeler retired the first 12 Reds he faced, allowed a home run, then retired the next 15 in a row to end the game
- This was his first complete game since August 8, 2021 – the game where the club retired Roy Halladay‘s jersey
- Wheeler struck out 12 Reds on the day – this is the first time in his career he struck out 10+ hitters in consecutive starts
- Wheeler has now gone eight or more innings in consecutive starts for the first time since August 26-September 1, 2023
- Only six balls left the infield, five of which traveled to right field (4 flyouts to Castellanos, opposite-field HR from Austin Hays). The last out of the game was the only one that went to left field. Brandon Marsh did not touch the ball all game
- He is the first Phillies starter since Cliff Lee in April 2013 to toss at least 8.0 innings with no walks in consecutive games and the first starter in the majors to do so since Gerrit Cole in September 2023
Thomson finished his rave review of Wheeler’s outing with some high praise:
“That was as dominant as you’re you’re gonna get other than a perfect game. One base runner, you know, first pitch strikes, strike percentage was way up there, he just – he amazes me. He really does.”
The Philadelphia crowd gave their horse a standing ovation when he emerged from the dugout for the ninth. They chanted “Let’s go Wheeler!” in between all eight pitches he threw, creating one of the most electric atmospheres I have seen in person. A truly incredible crowd for an outstanding moment and performance.
Wheeler also received the news today that he will be in the All-Star game – his third nod for the Midsummer Classic, all since joining the Phillies. The only question now is whether he gets the nod to start the game for the National League – he more than deserves it.
Other Phillies notes
Speaking of All-Stars, Kyle Schwarber earned a spot as a National League reserve after essentially carrying Philadelphia’s offense for the first two months of the season. This will be the slugger’s third All-Star game – second as a member of the Phillies. Schwarber is currently on pace for a career-high 48 home runs (27 currently). His .250 batting average would be his highest in a Phillies uniform, and his .382 on-base percentage would be the best of his career. He confirmed for reporters that he will not be participating in this year’s Home Run Derby.
Philadelphia struggled mightily with runners in scoring position during this home stand, slashing .196 (ranked 25th)/.276 (24th)/.353 (21st) in the last week. Today was especially bad, as they were 0-for-10 with nine strikeouts on the day. They had several chances to drive Reds starter, Chase Burns, from the game in the first two frames, but couldn’t get the job done despite forcing his pitch count up to 55 pitches. Thomson did address that in the middle of the adulation for his starter postgame:
“We had so many chances. I mean, we gotta put the ball in play with runners in scoring position. I mean, you can’t strike out at the rate that we struck out today. And I don’t think we will move forward, but It’s something we need to think about.”
Bryce Harper‘s struggles since returning from the injured list continued – as he went 0-for-3 with two Ks and a walk. He put one ball in play, a weak grounder to the first baseman. Since his return, he has only three hits – all singles (.176 BA). He has struck out nine times, walked thrice, and scored only one run.
Bryson Stott had the biggest hit of the game for the Phillies, sending a middle-cut fastball 105.8 miles per hour off the facing of the second deck in right field. It was just his second long ball since mid-May. It also broke a 2-for-21 streak over his last seven games. He finished the day with two walks, a two-run homer, and he saw 27 pitches on the day. Thomson said “it was huge” for his second baseman to have a big swing in a big moment. The home run came in the eighth inning and gave Wheeler his first lead of the game, allowing him to earn the complete game victory.
Philadelphia is riding high, with a few All-Stars on board their plane. Before they get a chance to play in the game, however, the team heads to San Francisco for a series with the Giants that starts tomorrow.
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
