Phils win series against Cards
Typically, the Philadelphia Phillies and Sunday Night Baseball do not mix well, but that wasn't the case on July 3. The Phillies and St. Louis Cardinals each sent their ace to the mound in hopes to secure a series win. Ultimately, Zack Wheeler out-dueled the 40-year-old Adam Wainwright, tossing seven scoreless innings. It was a solid team win, and a huge series victory for the Phillies. Wheeler looked superb, the bullpen delivered, Realmuto came up big, and Philadelphia is now one game back of the third NL Wild Card spot. —Lauren Amour, Inside the Phillies
Pitching performances:
PHI Zack Wheeler: 7.0 IP, 4 H, BB, 5 K
STL Adam Wainwright: 5.2 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, BB, 5 K
Standout bats:
PHI J.T. Realmuto: 2-for-4, HR, 2 RBI
PHI Rhys Hoskins: 2-for-4, 2B, HR, RBI, K
PHI Nick Castellanos: 1-for-4, RBI
STL Nolan Arenado: 1-for-4, K
MORE: Trade deadline candidates that could offer the Phillies' rotation much-needed stability —Ben Silver, Inside the Phillies
Ranger Suárez placed on 15-day IL
The Phillies announced on Sunday that starter Ranger Suárez was placed on the 15-day IL (retro to June 30) with a lower back spasm.
With Suárez on the IL, the Phillies are now without two starters, as Zach Eflin was just placed there on June 28 with a right knee bruise.
Suárez struggled a bit in his last outing against Atlanta, allowing four runs on six hits across 6.2 innings. He also struck out seven and walked two.
On the season, the lefty hasn’t been sharp. He sports a 4.33 ERA across 79 innings in 15 outings in 2022. —Lauren Amour, Inside the Phillies
MORE: Bryce Harper's absence may decide Rob Thomson's fate —Jeff Fitzpatrick, Inside the Phillies
Beating Philadelphia isn’t as hard as Philadelphians say it is
…Since the Nationals tweeted this on Aug. 25, 2020, Washington is just 10-23 against the Phillies. Philadelphia will hope to continue their winning ways against the Nats in a three-game set this week. Despite being down two of their starters, the series is in the Phillies' favor, as Philadelphia took four of five games against Washington in June. The Nationals could also be without Juan Soto, which is good news for the Phillies’ chances of moving into the third NL Wild Card spot. —Declan Harris, Inside the Phillies
Game 1:
PHI starter: Cristopher Sánchez (0-1, 4.60 ERA)
WSH starter: Paolo Espino (0-1, 2.80 ERA)
First pitch: July 5, 7:05 p.m. EST
NBCSP/94.1 WIP
Game 2:
PHI starter: TBD
WSH starter: Josiah Gray (6-5, 4.22 ERA)
First pitch: July 6, 7:05 p.m. EST
NBCSP/94.1 WIP
Game 3:
PHI starter: TBD
WSH starter: TBD
First pitch: July 7, 4:05 p.m. EST
NBCSP/94.1 WIP
MORE: What the Phillies need to do to earn a Wild Card spot —Leo Morgenstern, Inside the Phillies
Phillies promote McGarry
The Phillies announced on Saturday that they promoted pitching prospect Griff McGarry from Single-A Jersey Shore to Double-A Reading.
The promotion comes after a dozen starts for McGarry in which he pitched to an ERA of 3.86 and a WHIP of 1.22.
But the most impressive part of McGarry's recent performances has been his ability to strike out his opponents, fanning an average of 10 batters over his last five outings.
McGarry was drafted by the Phillies in the fifth round of the 2021 MLB June Amateur Draft, spending his first season in both Single-A and High-A. —Declan Harris, Inside the Phillies
MORE: Phillies claim Sam Clay from Washington —Declan Harris, Inside the Phillies
Rojas begins Double-A stint with five-game hit streak
One week ago today, the Phillies announced the promotion of Johan Rojas, which came to the surprise of many.
And yet, here he is seven days later with a five-game hitting streak under his belt and eight hits in his first 20 Double-A at-bats. He's also stolen four bags, walked four times, and has yet to strike out. In fact, Monday's game was his best yet: the center fielder slapped three singles and worked two walks.
Baseball is a funny sport sometimes.
Triple-A: Aaron Barrett calls it a career
After a long career full of ups, downs, and everything in-between, Phillies' right-hander Aaron Barrett, who the club signed to a minor league pact this spring, called it a career on Monday. He retired the side in order in what was his final inning of professional baseball with the Lehigh Valley IronPigs.
Double-A: Ortiz manages monster day, falls triple short of cycle
It's been a wishy-washy season for Jhailyn Ortiz. He's been substantially streaky at the plate, and continues to strike out at an unfortunate rate. However, Monday was a good one, as Ortiz launched a solo home run his for his 13th of the year, as well as ripped a double and single to round out a three-hit effort.
High-A: Casey Martin continues intriguing stretch
Perhaps one of the most unpredictable prospects in the Phillies’ system, Martin seems to be stringing something together with Jersey Shore. Recently, he has had himself a strong stretch. Since June 19, the infielder is hitting .296, alongside three doubles and three home runs in a 12-game span.
Single-A: Starlyn Castillo makes his way back to Clearwater
The Phillies' big-money signee out of the Dominican Republic in 2018 finally made his way back to Clearwater, and tossed three innings of three-run ball for the Threshers, striking out four. After he underwent season-ending Tommy John surgery last year, the 20-year-old fireballer is back, and ready to slot into Clearwater's rotation. —Alex Carr, Inside the Phillies
Opinion: Hoskins is carrying the Phillies’ offense this season
After a dismal start to the 2022 season, Rhys Hoskins has been unstoppable since his benching on May 8. In 53 games since, he is hitting .289/.377/.572, crushed 15 home runs, and his 160 wRC+ suggests he has performed 60% better than league average in that time. During this period, he also ranks seventh in the NL in wRC+ and FanGraphs Wins Above Replacement, and is tied for fourth in home runs.
After finally getting over his early season slump, Hoskins has been one of the best hitters in the sport. His hot bat is a major reason why Philadelphia has played so well as of late. The Phillies are 31-23 since May 8, good for a .574 winning percentage.
Absent Bryce Harper, no hitter has done more for the Phillies this season than Hoskins. His strong performance has kept Philadelphia in the race thus far.
President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski spent $179 million on two sluggers this offseason, but it may very well be that the best option was the one the Phillies already had at home. —Leo Morgenstern, Inside the Phillies
MORE: Schwarber must continue hot streak for Philadelphia throughout July —Declan Harris, Inside the Phillies