Suarez, Merrifield, Dahl lead Phillies to victory over Red Sox

As fans look toward Opening Day at Citizens Bank Park (just two weeks away!), the Phillies beat the Red Sox on Thursday afternoon, 6-1.

Here’s a look at the good, the bad, and the ugly from the game:

The Good

– Ranger Suarez impressed in his third spring start. He walked four in 3.2 innings, but allowed just one hit and held the Sox scoreless. Suarez hasn’t allowed a run in ten exhibition innings overall, striking out 12 and posting a 0.80 WHIP. Speaking in the clubhouse afterwards, he was surprisingly tough on himself: “I’m practicing to have my glove ready during my windup, to have it as high as possible. I had it a little bit low today so it had me a little bit out of balance.” Suarez said that keeping the glove in the right spot helps his control and makes him quicker to the plate.

Six years and 454 regular season innings into his major league career, the 28-year-old lefty has a 3.41 ERA. And Suarez has been incredible in the postseason: 33.1 IP, 1.62 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, 32 strikeouts.

– Whit Merrifield, a/k/a “Two-Hit Whit,” lived up to his nickname in this one with an RBI double in the second and an RBI single in the fourth. Through 23 spring at-bats, he’s slashing .348 with a 1.218 OPS. “I’m less worried about results out there than I am doing things to get my body prepared for a long season,” Merrifield said on a game broadcast earlier this spring. But whether he cares about them or not, the results thus far are looking pretty good.

– David Dahl has flown under the radar a bit this spring. As PA announcer Scott Palmer announced the Phillies’ starting lineup before the game, the Phanatic did one of his best shticks on top of the home dugout, mimicking each player’s attributes. The mascot (who is not a bird, despite what The Man tells you) did some muscle poses when Kyle Schwarber was announced, stretched himself out to demonstrate Alec Bohm’s height, etc. When Dahl’s name was announced as the lineup’s ninth hitter, the Phanatic was at a loss, looking at the crowd and shrugging.

But the left-handed Dahl may be making a name for himself with the Phils. With a single and a double in three at-bats on Friday, Dahl raised his spring batting average and OPS to .292 and .933, respectively. Since an all-star season with the Rockies in 2019, when he posted a career-high .877 OPS, Dahl has played only 91 major league games (a shoulder injury derailed his career). But if you’re not enthusiastic about Jake Cave as the Phils’ primary left-handed bench bat, you may be interested to know that Dahl has a career .281/.330/.493 (.823 OPS) line against right-handed pitching in 909 plate appearances.

Consider Dahl a dark horse to make the Phils’ Opening Day roster. He’s competing with Cave and Cristian Pache for a bench spot and, unlike Dahl, those players can’t be stashed in the minors. But if Johan Rojas starts the season in AAA, an extra spot would open up, and the Phanatic might have to figure out a way to mock Dahl pre-game.

The Bad

– Not much to complain about in this one. If we nitpick, Jeff Hoffman allowed three hits in the inning he worked, and Andrew Bellatti served up a seventh-inning home run to spoil the shutout. Bryce Harper went 0/3 and his spring batting average dropped to .227.

But there’s nothing to worry about with any of those guys, and overall this was a solid performance for your Fightins.

The Ugly

– Jose Alvarado tried to do the Ranger Suarez casual-fielding thing in the fifth inning on a David Hamilton ground ball. But Alvarado was a little too casual, and Hamilton was safe at first.

Hamilton then stole second base, but Alvarado escaped the inning unscathed.

Up Next

The Phillies will play the Astros in West Palm Beach, FL on Friday. That’s an eight-hour round trip bus ride, so we probably shouldn’t expect many Phillies stars to play in the game. 6:05 p.m. start.