Zack Attack: Wheeler Leads Phillies to Victory, Halting Six-Game Skid
The 2024 MLB regular season is over halfway through, and as we enter the dog days of summer, many teams, including elite teams, tend to experience a mid-season slump or spell as a result of playing nearly every day leading up to the last few months of the season. During the last month, a number of World Series candidates have either previously performed poorly or are now struggling. The Yankees, who have arguably had the worst stretch of below-average baseball, as well as the Orioles, Guardians, and Dodgers, all had records that were similarly at roughly 65 wins going into Sunday's games. The NL East-leading Philadelphia Phillies are the most recent team to succumb to their own midseason slump. The Phillies had the best record in MLB going into the All-Star Break, but they have since gone 3-11 and have struggled to regain their groove. The Phillies, with their ace Zack Wheeler starting on the mound, were hoping to avoid their second consecutive sweep of the week going into Sunday's series finale against the Seattle Mariners. After losing six straight games, the Phillies ended their losing streak by defeating the Mariners 6-0 behind a dominant outing by Wheeler that included eight shutout innings.
The Phillies quickly took advantage of Mariners pitcher Logan Gilbert's third pitch of the game, as designated hitter Kyle Schwarber smashed his 23rd home run of the season and his 41st career lead-off home run to give the Phillies a 1-0 lead. The Phillies would have a chance to extend their lead in the fourth inning with runners on the corners and two outs, but first baseman Bryce Harper would be out caught stealing after trying to dash for home plate after catcher J.T. Realmuto got himself into a rundown between first and second base. The Phillies would finally add some insurance runs in the eighth inning after a brilliant pitching duel between Wheeler and Gilbert that saw both offenses held in check. On the seventh pitch of the at-bat, second baseman Bryson Stott launched his eighth home run of the year off relief pitcher Yimi Garcia to start the inning and increase the Phillies' lead to 2-0.
The Phillies would continue to pile on runs to take a 6-0 lead after back-to-back home runs by Harper and Alec Bohm and an RBI single by Realmuto to end a five-run inning. In the ninth inning, Phillies' pitcher Jose Ruiz would slam the door on the Mariners, getting two strikeouts to secure the victory in the series finale. The Phillies' 10-game West Coast trip will continue on Monday night, as they'll fly to Los Angeles to play the Dodgers, and the following weekend, they'll play a four-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks to conclude the trip. As the Phillies enter the final months of the season with a six-game lead in the NL East, they expect to make another deep run into the playoffs and that today's victory will help them get back on track.
