Philadelphia – The Phillies not only put together the best series of the season…but also arguably one of their best once.
They finished three games of three games Wednesday afternoon at Citizens Bank Park with an 11-2 rout. It was a series where Phillies had the biggest hits in over 25 years of play and had the most strikeouts from their pitchers since at least 1900.
The Phillies scored 20 hits in the finale after recording a season-high 21 hits in Monday's series opener. Trea Turner hit five times. Kyle Schwarber added three more times, including his 45th-leading home run in the National League. Max Kepler and Bryson Stott also have three. For the second time in three games, each Phillies starter had at least one knock.
Overall, the Phillies have 48 hits in three games against the Mariners. It's the sixth highest in any three series in franchise history, the biggest since 1999's game against the Cubs.
“Their arms are really good in three games with those weapons – just showing you that we can do that, and we need to believe we can do that,” Stott said.
“That was a great series.”
It's not just an offense.
Their first full series since putting Zack Wheeler on the injured roster, the Phillies starters responded with one of the most important series in its franchise history.
Ranger Suárez strikes out 10 times on Monday. Cristopher Sánchez eliminated 12 on Tuesday. Jesús Luzardo added another 12 on Wednesday.
According to the Erias Sports Bureau, this is the first time the Phillies strikeout with three consecutive numbers since at least 1893, the first year away from the current mound. No team has done so since the Padres in 2022.
Overall, the trio's 34 strikeouts were the most in any three-game series in Hyundai (since 1900). The Bullpen threw 12 more strikeouts, and the 46 K was the most in any three games overall.
“For us, the best thing we can do as a rotation is to keep moving forward and keep proving that we are the highest rotation,” Luzardo said. “Everyone goes there and tries to take care of their job.”
The performances are not only after the shocking news about Wheeler over the weekend, but after entering the series after three cities, 10-game journeys.
“The most impressive of them is that it's the backend without a break on 13 days,” said manager Rob Thomson. “Today, our guys are full of energy and the whole series is good, at every stage.”
Although obviously happy, Townsend was not surprised.
“I know who they are. They're grinding, they're tough, fighting,” Thomson said. “Wheel news is terrible, I think Wheel and his family. But they're not going to cancel the game for us, so we have to keep playing.”
Back to Sunday's series against the Nationals, the Phillies are 4-0 since putting Wheeler in Illinois on Saturday night. They averaged 10 runs and 15.3 hits in those four games – and contributed throughout the lineup.
Turner's winning streak was 10 straight, hitting .522 (24-46) with a 1.237 move. He has hit multiple times in six of his last seven games. Schwarber was a career-high 109 this season in five RBIs on Wednesday. He is also at 57 home runs, with Ryan Howard having a club record of 58, setting a 2006 record.
And Stott, who hit .353 with 1.011 OPS in his last 20 games. Bryce Harper has 1.010 OPS in his last 35 games and has made some Phillies history with a pair of 440-foot home runs Monday. Brandon Marsh hit .339 with 1.012 OPS in his last 15 games. JT Realmuto has hit .324 since early June.
As a team, the Phillies have 54 home runs since the biggest game in the All-Star Game.
“It feels like we're playing the best baseball right now,” Turner said. “…It's just that everyone is contributing and it feels like a full-scale team effort.”