Schwarber's clutch dinger gets Phillies back on track against Nationals originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
WASHINGTON — The Phillies were in desperate search of a few slump-busting runs Friday night.
They were very glad to have Kyle Schwarber at the plate.
Schwarber hammered a go-ahead three-run homer in the seventh inning and the Phils snapped a three-game losing streak with a 6-2 win at Nationals Park.
The club now sits at 70-52 this season. The Phillies are 5-3 on a road trip that has two games to go against the Nats.
Friday’s start was Zack Wheeler’s second since being pushed back in the Phillies’ rotation because of shoulder soreness. He pitched five innings, allowed four hits and two runs, struck out six and walked two.
Wheeler’s velocity was significantly down in his last outing against the Rangers; the 35-year-old righty’s four-seam fastball averaged 94.2 mph. He was also below his norm against the Nationals, but Wheeler’s velocity numbers were certainly not alarming. Wheeler averaged 95.7 mph on four-seamers, which is 0.4 mph under his season average.
The Phillies immediately went to work against Nats lefty MacKenzie Gore. Trea Turner led off with a single, swiped second base and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Schwarber walked.
Bryce Harper lined the seventh pitch of his at-bat to right field and sprinted for second. Right fielder Dylan Crews failed to throw Harper out and his one-hop effort leaked past shortstop CJ Abrams. Schwarber profited, heading home to give the Phils a 2-0 edge.
Though Gore needed 37 pitches in the first inning, the Phillies’ lead did not balloon. Nick Castellanos flew out to the center-field warning track for the night’s first out. Edmundo Sosa and Otto Kemp both struck out with the bases loaded.
The Nats answered in the bottom of the first with a James Wood leadoff walk and CJ Abrams RBI double.
Washington nearly tied the game up in the second inning. After a one-out Crews single and Wheeler wild pitch, Riley Adams knocked an opposite-field hit. The Nats sent Crews home and Castellanos made a great defensive play, tossing a perfect throw to the plate and letting J.T. Realmuto handle the rest.
Wheeler’s command sharpened a bit as the night progressed, although he was clearly not at his top level. The Nationals had plenty of lengthy at-bats him. On the 12th pitch of his third-inning at-bat, Josh Bell grounded out to first. Daylen Lile lifted a down-and-in splitter over the right-field fence to even the contest in the fourth inning.
“It’s been iffy, to be honest with you,” Wheeler said of his command lately. “Today was a little bit better. I was able to throw high with ease instead of feeling like I was trying to throw it high. That’s my bread and butter, just letting it go and it rides up there. Once I get a full feel for that back, I think everything else will kind of just fall into place.”
For a moment, it appeared the Phillies might squander another chance in the seventh. Turner popped up a 2-0 fastball from lefty reliever Konnor Pilkington with runners on first and second.
Schwarber stepped up and slugged.
His blast to the second deck in right field traveled 456 feet and prompted a roar from the sizable contingent of Phils’ fans in D.C. Harper deepened Pilkington’s misery, smoking a slider over the center-field wall.
From there, the Phillies’ bullpen finished off the Nats. Tanner Banks, Orion Kerkering and Matt Strahm each pitched a scoreless inning.
The ninth was supposed to be Jhoan Duran’s, but he only saw one batter.
Paul DeJong lined a sweeper up the middle and it struck Duran’s right ankle. He began to run after the ball but pulled up short and appeared to be in pain. After talking with members of the Phillies’ training staff during a long delay, Duran left the game on the Nats’ bullpen cart and David Robertson came in.
Following the game, a Phillies official said X-rays on Duran were negative and he’ll be evaluated further on Saturday.
Robertson ultimately got the job done, recording the final three outs of the Phils’ 70th victory.
On deck
Saturday’s first pitch is scheduled for 4:05 p.m. Taijuan Walker (4-5, 3.39 ERA) will face Cade Cavalli (0-0, 3.86 ERA).
Phillies manager Rob Thomson said pregame that “there’s a chance” Alec Bohm returns over the weekend from his rehab assignment. Bohm played his fifth game with Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Friday night, going 0 for 4. He’s at 3 for 21 in this rehab stretch.
