If the Phillies were hoping a cross-state trip against a struggling team would reverse their misfortunes, they didn’t share that memo with the Pirates.
Despite more excellent starting pitching, the Phillies found a way to lose all three games, as the Pirates swept the series by winning each game by one run, with each go-ahead run coming in the seventh inning or later. Two of three Pirates wins in the series came in Pittsburgh's last at-bat, including a walk-off win Friday night.
The sweep capped an abysmal road trip for the Phillies, who went 1-5 combined against the Blue Jays and Pirates and scored more than four runs just once while scoring just one run in four of the past five games as life without slugger Bryce Harper continues to be frustrating for them.
The power outage continued for the Phils, who already were struggling with the long ball before Friday's announcement that Harper was going on IL with wrist soreness. They managed just five doubles and one homer against a Pirates team that has MLB's 15th-best team ERA, 21st-best bullpen ERA.
Each game was within reach, but in each game, the Phils did just enough to lose. On Friday, the Pirates walked off in the ninth on a bases-loaded sac fly. On Saturday, Pirates catcher Henry Davis broke a 1-1 tie with a nine-iron homer in the seventh off Ranger Suárez, who otherwise tossed a superb game. On Sunday, old friend Andrew McCutchen spoiled an outstanding outing from Cristopher Sánchez with an eighth-inning single to plate Oneil Cruz for the go-ahead run. The Phils threatened in the ninth, but Alec Bohm – one of the team's most dependable late-game hitters with runners in scoring position – grounded into a game-ending double play with two on.
Remember that Phillies nine-game win streak from May 16-24? The hot streak, which ironically started against the Pirates, sure seems like ancient history, as does the 19-6 record the Phils posted throughout May until losing three straight at the end of the month, a malaise that has carried into June. They've lost nine of their past 10 games.
Life sucks without Bryce
Yeah, the Phils are really struggling without the two-time NL MVP. They fell to 1-7 in games Harper has missed since taking a fastball off the right elbow against Atlanta's Spencer Strider on May 27.
Theoretically, they shouldn't be this anemic offensively without Harper, not with high-priced talent such as Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber, and Nick Castellanos in the lineup. Schwarber, in the three-hole all series, homered in Game 2 but that was his lone hit in 11 at-bats and he struck out five times. After gong 3-for-5 in Game 1, Turner went 0-for-8 in the last two games, albeit hits were at a premium on Sunday against Pirates All-Star right-hander Paul Skenes. Castellanos went 2-for-10 in the series and Bryson Stott went 1-for-9.
In those eight games without Harper, the Phillies are batting just .201 and have just one homer in their past four games, which has spoiled the efforts of their starting pitching. It'll be interesting to see if manager Rob Thomson has any changes in store.
Wasted Bullpen Game
It wasn't a terrible series for the Phillies bullpen, which has been inconsistent all year, but wasn't great either. Friday's bullpen game was started by Joe Ross, who allowed a run in two innings, followed by Tanner Banks, Alan Rangel, Kerkering, Matt Strahm and Jordan Romano.
Rangel blew a 4-2 lead in his first inning of relief, in the fourth, but then combined with Kerkering and Strahm for four scoreless innings as the game remained tied at 4-4 into the ninth, when chaos ensued for Romano. The hard-luck reliever allowed two singles, but the major damage was done by Isiah Kiner-Falefa's bunt that trickled up the line and somehow just barely stayed fair before coming to a screeching halt to load the bases, setting up a very deep sacrifice fly by Nick Gonzalez as the Pirates walked off with the 2-1 win.
Taijuan Walker pitched a scoreless eighth in Game 2, overcoming two walks, and Kerkering didn't allow any other hits in Game 3 other than McCutchen's go-ahead single in the eighth. But there's no way Suárez and Sánchez each should have taken losses as the two left-handers combined for four runs on 11 hits in 14 innings while striking out 14 and walking just three.
Potential trade chip emerging
Attention, Dave Dombrowski: Pirates closer David Bednar appears to be back to his two-time All Star form after a tough 2024 season and a bad start in 2025 that landed him in the minors briefly. Bednar picked up a win and save during the series sweep, striking out four without allowing a hit or walk in two innings.
Bednar’s scoreless ninth against the Phils on Saturday was his seventh consecutive scoreless outing going back to May 24. His ERA, which was 5.17 that day, is under 4.00 for the first time this season. He's on a one-year deal and probably wouldn’t cost the Phillies much in return as a rental who could help during the pennant run and postseason.
While he's at it, Dombrowski might want to see if he can bring back McCutchen, the former Phillie and 2013 NL MVP who went 3-for-7 with two RBIs in the series. The Phillies need some right-handed outfield bench depth, someone who can hit and, preferably, has postseason experience. At 38, McCutchen showed he still has some gas left in the tank, especially against lefties.
What's On Deck?
The schedule doesn't lighten any for the Phillies, who come home to face an NL Central-leading Chicago Cubs team that can score in a hurry, The Cubs entered Sunday's action with MLB’s best run differential (+105) and the NL’s most road wins. The Phils then have another three-game set against the Blue Jays, who just took two of three from the Phils last week in Toronto and outscored them 11-2 in the two victories.
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