Zack Wheeler continues string of Phillies’ dominant pitching in 11-4 sweep of Blue Jays
Wheeler struck out nine in six innings and got plenty of help from his offense, including Nick Castellanos' sixth inning grand slam on Father's Day.
A week after punctuating a miserable 10-game stretch by getting swept by one of the worst teams in baseball, the Phillies broomed the Toronto Blue Jays — and closed a get-healthy homestand — with an 11-4 rout Sunday.
The key to the about-face?
Rob Thomson pointed to a bamboo plant in his office.
» READ MORE: The Phillies’ outfield production is among the majors’ worst since Bryce Harper moved. Can they fix it?
OK, so botany isn’t actually the answer. Like everyone, the manager knows it’s much more about starting pitching than anything else.
Because even though rookie infielder Otto Kemp tallied four hits and the Phillies smashed two homers, including Nick Castellanos’ sixth-inning grand slam that made it a full-on knee-slapper, this game, like the others on the homestand, was won from the mound.
Making his first Father’s Day start as a dad of four, with his family among the sold-out crowd of 44,681, Zack Wheeler racked up nine strikeouts in six innings, including five in a row and seven in a span of eight batters.
“You have the kids in the back of your mind and try to pitch well for them and make them happy and let them enjoy it, too,” Wheeler said after his second start since his wife, Dominique, had their fourth child. “It’s very important. My family’s growing, and to pitch in front of them, it’s always pretty cool.”
It continued this string of gems from the starters:
Sunday: Wheeler — six innings, four hits, two runs (one earned), nine strikeouts, zero walks.
Saturday: Cristopher Sánchez — seven innings, five hits, two runs, five strikeouts, zero walks.
Friday: Ranger Suárez — seven innings, four hits, zero runs, six strikeouts, one walk.
Wednesday: Jesús Luzardo — six innings, five hits, one run, 10 strikeouts, zero walks.
Monday: Wheeler — six innings, three hits, one run, seven strikeouts, one walk.
There isn’t a bigger reason for the Phillies’ run of five wins in six games — or for optimism, in general, even amid their recent stretch of nine losses in 10 games, that a hot streak is always around the corner.
“That’s a good club Toronto’s got,” Thomson said. “They can swing the bats. We pitched very well.”
» READ MORE: Can starters provide relief? Sizing up who could fill a need in the Phillies’ bullpen for the playoffs.
And the Phillies’ big weekend coincided with a lost weekend for the first-place Mets, who were swept in New York by the Rays. The Phillies (42-29) shaved their NL East deficit from 4½ games at the beginning of the week to 2½, with the Mets coming to town Friday.
But about that bamboo …
Two weeks ago, hitting coach Kevin Long’s wife, Marcey, took one look at an ailing plant on a side table in Thomson’s office and volunteered to nurse it back to health. While it received sunlight and TLC at the Longs’ house, the Phillies got swept at home by the Brewers and had a 1-5 trip to Toronto and Pittsburgh.
Last Sunday, Long called his wife.
“We better get that thing back in Thoms’ office,” he said.
The bamboo returned this week, and well, the Phillies took two of three games from the NL Central-leading Cubs before outscoring the Blue Jays by a 22-6 margin in three games.
“That’s the story of our success,” Thomson said.
Actually, the turnaround homestand was bookended by Wheeler starts. He set the tone against the Jays with a 12-pitch first inning. Despite lacking his peak fastball velocity, he gave up one hit — a two-out single, no less — through four innings, enabling the Phillies to jump to a 4-0 lead against Blue Jays starter José Berríos.
It took all of two pitches for the Phillies to grab the lead. Trea Turner doubled on Berríos’ first pitch; Kyle Schwarber singled home Turner on the second.
» READ MORE: Early Phillies trade deadline preview: Bullpen help will be costly. Here are some relievers to watch.
Kemp’s big day began in the third inning. He reached on an infield single, stole second, and scored on Alec Bohm’s two-out single. Kemp made it 4-0 in the fourth inning by reaching out over the plate to line a two-run single to left field.
The Phillies called up Kemp on June 7 when Bryce Harper went on the injured list with inflammation in his right wrist. After going 0-for-5 with a walk last weekend in Pittsburgh, Kemp was 10-for-24 in six games at home.
“I feel good,” Kemp said. “It’s really just an extension of where we were at [in triple A]. Try not to change anything. It’s the same game that we’ve been playing all year. The goal is to get better from beginning to end.”
Wheeler isn’t shy about sharing his goals. Each year, in spring training, he discusses chasing the Cy Young Award, which eluded him with second-place finishes last season and in 2021. He also wants to win at least one World Series.
And he has given himself a deadline: 2027.
When Wheeler signed the three-year extension last year that gave him the highest annual salary in franchise history ($42 million), he said he intends to retire after the 2027 season to be home with his children.
» READ MORE: Phillies prospect Andrew Painter bounces back with five scoreless innings for triple-A Lehigh Valley
“Two things that a pitcher wants to do is win a Cy Young personally and then also win a World Series,“ Wheeler said. ”That’s why we play, to win a World Series. We’ve come close past few years, and I think we’re just hungry for it. We’re playing well right now. Hopefully we can just keep it going and we can get there."
For the Phillies, everything traces back to pitching, with Wheeler leading the way.