Phillies grind out victory over Blue Jays, win thanks to Kepler's go-ahead blast originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
Max Kepler blasted the Phillies to a series victory Saturday over the Blue Jays.
Kepler clubbed a go-ahead home run in the eighth inning and the Phils picked up a 3-2 win at Citizens Bank Park.
They sit at 41-29 on the season and will look for a three-game sweep on Sunday afternoon. Zack Wheeler (6-2, 2.85 ERA) is set to face Jose Berrios (2-2, 3.38 ERA).
The Phillies’ pitching was stellar on a day their offense didn’t produce much. Cristopher Sanchez went seven innings and allowed two runs and five hits. He had zero walks, one hit by pitch and five strikeouts. Orion Kerkering and Matt Strahm threw scoreless innings out of the bullpen.
Sanchez didn’t mind facing Toronto’s lefty-less lineup at all.
“The first thing I did when I got here was laugh a little because I saw the lineup, all righties,” he said. “I like when they challenge me. Even more than that, we have a game plan and we stick to it. Whether it’s a righty hitter or a lefty hitter, we just have a plan and we have to execute it.”
Blue Jays leadoff man Bo Bichette struck out on Sanchez’s ninth pitch of the day, waving at a slider. Sanchez increased his season strikeout total to 88 Saturday over 79 and 2/3 innings. The Phillies have three pitchers in the National League’s top 10 for strikeouts per nine innings with Wheeler, Jesus Luzardo and Sanchez.
The Blue Jays opened the scoring vs. Sanchez in the second inning. Nick Castellanos’ leaping attempt to catch Ernie Clement’s fly ball to the right-field fence was unsuccessful. Myles Straw drove Clement in with a two-out line drive that glanced off the tip of Alec Bohm’s glove on its way to left field.
Despite a couple of long fly balls in the early innings, the Phillies failed to reach base against Toronto starter Bowden Francis until nine-hitter Brandon Marsh knocked an opposite-field single. Francis found a groove, locating well and mixing in his off-speed pitches effectively.
The righty’s command dramatically deserted him in the fourth inning.
The Phillies rallied with two outs through basic patience; Francis walked three batters and hit two. Otto Kemp’s HBP put the Phils up 2-1, Francis exited, and Brendon Little jogged in from the bullpen.
Little threw a 1-2 breaking ball to Marsh in the dirt and J.T. Realmuto made the aggressive decision to sprint home. The gamble didn’t pay off. Jays catcher Tyler Heineman recovered the ball in time to tag Realmuto out at the plate.
Sanchez and the Phillies narrowly missed a shutdown inning. The Phils couldn’t quite turn an inning-ending double play on Bichette — the Blue Jays won their challenge to overturn the initial out call — and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. then ripped an RBI double to deep right-center.
The Phillies were unable to cash in on Marsh’s leadoff single in the fifth. Kemp lined out to right field with two outs and runners on the corners in the sixth.
Outside of Kepler’s dinger, the Phillies’ top six batters had zero hits in the game. Kepler rendered those struggles irrelevant with one powerful swing, lacing a Chad Green fastball into the seats.
After starting June 1 for 18, he’s shown some pop lately. Kepler is 4 for 13 with two doubles and two homers over the last four games.
“I think I’m starting to see the ball better,” he said. “Just be patient and continue to believe in my swing. And not worry if it’s going to fool me, make me look way out in front. Just commit to my swing and get it off.”
He acknowledged that’s not always as simple as it sounds.
“Baseball comes with a lot of doubt,” Kepler said. “It’s a mental game. You fail the majority of the time. So if you tend to overthink like me, it can sometimes spiral a little bit and you can find a dark place. But as of right now, I’m leaning on my guys on this team that really uplift me. … I’m just looking forward and believing in my work off the field, and believing in myself.”
Phillies’ plans at first
Kemp has played the Phillies’ past three games at first base. Phillies manager Rob Thomson said pregame that he thinks the rookie’s looked “very comfortable” there.
With Bryce Harper sidelined by a right wrist injury, Kyle Schwarber is also in the Phils’ current first-base picture.
“He’s still working out there,” Thomson said. “But now that we have Otto, I’d like to give him some reps. I’d like to get (Edmundo) Sosa back into a game as well at some point. You might see Schwarber in the outfield here a little bit, just to get (Castellanos) off his feet, let him DH for a bit.”
Schwarber’s started four games in left field so far this season. He’s only made nine MLB starts at first, all with the 2021 Red Sox.
