Zack Wheeler threw six shutout innings, Bryce Harper hit an RBI double, and Rafael Marchan homered as the Phillies won most of Thursday’s ballgame against the Miami Marlins, 3-0. Most importantly, everyone stayed healthy.
Stop reading right there if you have a weak stomach.
Wheeler ended the sixth inning with his pitch count at 95 and came back out for the seventh. When Marlins outfielder Nick Gordon flew out on the first pitch, leaving Wheeler in the game looked like a good decision by manager Rob Thomson.
“[Wheeler’s] pitch count was in hand,” said Thomson afterwards. “Usually I’ll take him to 110.”
Miami shortstop Tim Anderson grounded out three pitches later. Wheeler was poised to finish up seven scoreless and turn the game over to the Phillies’ bullpen.
Then came an incredibly unfortunate series of events:
– Otto Lopez reached base with two outs on a soft line drive that found some grass in shallow center field.
– Wheeler quickly put the next batter, Marlins catcher Ali Sanchez, in an 0-2 count. After a foul ball, Wheeler caught the high outside corner of the plate with a 96 mph fastball, his 103rd pitch of the night. The pitch should have ended the inning. But home plate umpire Emil Jimenez called it a ball.
– Sanchez battled Wheeler to a full count in what ended up being a ten-pitch at bat. And on Wheeler’s 115th and final pitch of the night, Sanchez singled to center. Lopez advanced to third.
– Matt Strahm, who has been lights-out all season, relieved Wheeler. He promptly hit Jazz Chisholm Jr. with a pitch, then served up a bases-clearing double to designated hitter Bryan De La Cruz. That tied the game at three.
In the dugout, Wheeler was not pleased with Jimenez.
– The bleeding didn’t stop there. Phillies-killer Josh Bell doubled to left, scoring De La Cruz scored and giving the Marlins a 4-3 lead.
– After the Phillies briefly tied the game at four in the bottom of the seventh, Marlins first baseman Jake Burger took Jeff Hoffman deep on Hoffman’s first pitch of the night. One double, one wild pitch, and one Edmundo Sosa error later, the Marlins led the Phils 6-4 in the eighth.
But wait! It gets worse!!
– Kyle Schwarber, playing left field for just the third time this season, retrieved the ball after the Sosa error and appeared to slip as he threw awkwardly to second base. Schwarber exited the game the following inning with what the Phillies described as “left groin tightness.”
– With two outs in the ninth and the Phillies trailing 7-4, Harper grounded out to second. Running hard in desperation to keep the game alive, Harper felt pain in his lower left hamstring halfway down the first base line.
Harper later said that he’d never felt anything similar in his career, and he was unsure of the severity of the injury. “Gonna see what imaging looks like tomorrow and go from there,” said the first baseman.
Thomson declined to speculate on the injuries to Schwarber and Harper, saying the team will know more on Friday.
Schwarber, for what it’s worth, said he didn’t think his injury would be “super-serious.” But he will undergo imaging as well.
Losing either Schwarber or Harper–let alone both–to injury for a significant amount of time would devastate a Phillies lineup that’s already missing J.T. Realmuto. The “next man up” mentality of the team has been amazing this year, but the injuries from this game may prove to be a tipping point.
The good news? The Phils are 53-28 after Thursday’s loss, with an eight-game division lead over the Atlanta Braves. They’ve put themselves in a position to handle a rough patch.
We’ll learn more about how rough the patch will be on Friday.
Up next
In the second game of four against the Marlins, Cristopher Sanchez (5-3, 2.67 ERA) will face Miami RHP Kyle Tyler (0-0, 4.50 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 6:20 p.m.
