By: Matthew Mack
The Phillies short road trip continues as they go to Busch Stadium to face the St. Louis Cardinals for a three game weekend series. The Phils are looking to bounce back after losing two of three to their division rival Atlanta Braves. The Cardinals, coming into the series, are in the middle of the pack in the NL Central at 5-7, losing two out of three against the Pirates in their previous series.
Friday night was basically nothing to see if you are a Phillies fan looking for offense. Mason Wynn of the Cardinals had to leave the game with lower back spasms after the second out of the game. In the fifth inning, Yohel Pozo yanked an RBI double down the line to score Thomas Saggese all the way from first base. Later in the inning, Phillies starting pitcher Aaron Nola walked Alec Burleson with bases loaded on a 3-1 pitch that missed on the outer half of the plate. In the 9th, the Phillies had an opportunity to get on the board with a runner on third. NIck Castellanos could not cash in as he popped out to end the game and got shut out in the process, 2-0. Outside of those runs being surrendered by Nola, he pitched 5 innings, giving up five hits and four walks while whiffing seven batters, getting the loss. Ryan Helsley picked up his second save of the season. The Phillies as a team scrounged three hits all game.
Saturday, Christopher Sanchez took the ball for the Phillies in Game 2 of this matchup versus Miles Mikolas. In this fray, the Phillies wasted no time as Castellanos rocked a double into left center to score two in the first inning. In the 5th, Bryson Stott also lined a double to score a run to extend the lead 3-0. In the 6th, Wilson Contreras got the Cards on the board with a liner to center to chase Luken Baker from second to score. Trea Turner gave the Phils insurance with an RBI single in the 7th to extend the lead 4-1. Christopher Sanchez pitched well enough to give the Phillies all they needed to secure the win with 6 ⅓ innings, scattering eight hits, an earned run, three strikeouts, and three bases on balls, securing his first win of the season. Jose Alvardo got his third save of the season to shut the door on the Cards in the ninth.
Sunday afternoon, there was an APB out for the Phillies offense. It was all Cardinals as they put up crooked numbers in the 4th, 6th, and 8th innings. Contreras slammed a two-run homer in the 4th. Nolan Arenado and Nolan Gorman both had RBI doubles in the 6th, and Jordan Walker homered in the 8th with his second of the season with a two-run homer as well. The Phillies had three hits all game. Zack Wheeler could not stop the St. Louis onslaught as he gave up seven hits and four runs, surrendering a home run in the process. The Phillies walked out of Busch Stadium in a losing effort 7-0, dropping the series.
So, going 2-4 on that small road trip was not what anyone would hope for. Like I mentioned earlier, the pitching staff needs to step up if they need to contain the Cardinals, The result, the offense of St. Louis showed up and pushed the Phillies pitching staff around. Now the Philies head back home to host the San Francisco Giants on Monday for a four game series. As of this writing, the Giants (11-4) are behind the Dodgers in the division, separating them by a game for the NL West lead. Phillies and the Mets are a half game apart with the Marlins lurking behind. Let’s be clear, the Phils cannot afford to get into a lull right now. The Giants are feeling themselves after winning two out of three against the Yankees in Yankee Stadium. The Phillies need to turn it around quickly as they face another tough team early in the season.