Phillies sweep Rays, move to season-high 30 games over .500 originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
He was not in the starting lineup on Wednesday when he reported to the stadium, but hours later the birthday boy Weston Wilson delivered for the Phillies with a dribbler down the third base line that won them a game and completed a sweep.
Wilson started at third base after Kyle Schwarber was scratched from the initial composition due to the elbow contusion he suffered on Tuesday evening. Bryce Harper moved to DH and Kody Clemens slid across the diamond to first base. Batting with two outs and runners on the corners in the sixth inning of a tie game, Wilson made soft contact on a 97-mph sinker in his hands and reached the no-man’s land between the mound and third base. He beat out the infield single and the Phillies beat the Rays3-2.
The Phils have won nine of 11 games, 14 of their last 18, and with an 88-58 record, they are further above .500 than they have been all season.
“What can I say? It all seems like the best thing in the world when you’re on the best team in baseball with the best record and the best teammates in baseball,” said Jose Alvaradowho pitched a clean eighth inning, his third in a row. “It all feels so good. I’m just proud of everything we’ve done and the results we’ve gotten.”
By regaining the lead in the bottom of the sixth inning, the Phillies’ offense helped Zack Wheeler in his 15th victory. Wheeler is 15-6 with a 2.60 ERA and a National League-best 0.97 WHIP in 29 starts.
The Phillies ace has three starts left in the regular season, but the last one will come in Game 161 or 162, which wouldn’t matter if the Phillies had clinched their playoff spot before then. If so, Wheeler is more likely to make an abbreviated start in that final weekend.
Unfortunately for Wheeler, this could be another Cy Young finalist season, just like in 2021 when he lost to Corbin Burnes despite pitching 46 extra innings. Chris Sale (16-3, 2.38 ERA) has been just as dominant as Wheeler, going 16 straight starts without allowing more than two runs. He also has a lifetime track record, as a 35-year-old who finished in the top five in Cy Young voting six straight seasons from 2013-18 without ever winning one. Wheeler will need Sale to get hot to overtake him in the race.
Sale and Wheeler are also expected to receive MVP votes at the midpoint. Shohei Ohtani, Francisco Lindor And Marcel Ozuna They’ll probably finish 1-2-3, but the field is wide open beyond them, and both starting pitchers rank in the National League’s top 10 in wins above replacement (including hitters).
Nick Castellanos gave the Phillies the lead early with a two-run home run in the bottom of the first, his 20th. Hours earlier, Rays manager Kevin Cash approached him during batting practice to apologize for Edwin Uceta Castellanos was intentionally hit with a pitch after the Phillies scored five runs against Uceta in the eighth inning Tuesday night. Uceta was suspended for three games by MLB and began serving his sentence immediately Wednesday. Castellanos was hit again in the eighth inning Wednesday by Rays reliever Kevin Kelly, but it didn’t appear to be an intentional hit and there was no further drama.
“Cash came to me while I was fighting with (his) son Liam and apologized, said all the right things and seemed genuine about it,” Castellanos said. “I think it’s great that they acknowledged that there was foul play, not just the cliché, ‘Oh, I don’t know why he’s mad.’ I respect Cash for his honesty and his commitment. There’s a right way to play the game and a wrong way to play the game. Admitting that is all I can ask for, and now it’s just a matter of moving forward.”
Pitching with the lead built early by Castellanos, Wheeler fought his way out of trouble in the second, third and fourth innings.
Eight of his first nine pitches in the second inning were outside the strike zone, leading to two walks and a run. He nearly managed to finish the inning without allowing a run, but the nine-hole hitter Taylor Walls singled with two outs. Wheeler then allowed a triple and a double leading off the third and fourth, but neither scored or ran Brandon Lowe after a one-out walk in the fifth.
Bryson Stott had a lot to do with it. He made a quick transition from glove to throwing hand to nail Jonathan Aranda Aranda came to the plate with one out and the infield in place for the fourth inning. Everything about the game was perfect and Stott must have been as effective as he was because Aranda still nearly beat the tag. Aranda gave Wheeler more trouble than anyone else Wednesday, walking, doubling and hitting a home run. Carlos Estevez struck him out to start the ninth inning.
Matt Strahm Alvarado pitched a scoreless seventh inning, lowering his ERA to 2.06. Alvarado has gone seven straight innings without allowing a run. He’s on the rise at an important time in a bullpen that already has four others – Strahm, Jeff Hoffman, Orion Kerkering and Estevez — who are throwing at full speed.
The Phillies are off Thursday and are expected to have both Schwarber and JT Realmuto The Phillies return Friday to begin a three-game home series against the Mets, who have taken a half-game lead over the Braves for the National League’s final wild-card spot. The Phillies will play the Mets seven times in their final 16 games, and all of them will be huge.
“I think we played three very complete baseball games,” Castellanos said. “I also liked how everyone contributed every night, it wasn’t just one player carrying the torch, we won as a team.”
