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On Friday morning, the Phillies season looked like it was coming apart. They had just suffered a sweep at the hands of the Orioles, and their bullpen appeared to be historically bad. Three days later, the bullpen still might not provide much confidence, but after sweeping a weekend series against the New York Mets, their overall prospects seem much better.
The Phillies got off to a good start on Sunday when Jean “James Cigarettes” Segura led off with a triple, and was driven in by Rhys Hoskins. However, the Phillies couldn’t do any further damage, which seemed like it might cost them when the Mets took a 2-1 lead in the fourth.
But those two runs were all the Mets were going to get against former teammate Zack Wheeler. Wheeler pitched seven strong innings, leading some Mets fans to wonder why he is no longer on their roster.
if only the Mets had a pitcher like Zack Wheeler to complement deGrom. Oh well
— kai (@kai_tremoglie) August 16, 2020
The Mets gave Jed Lowrie a 20 M contract and Rick Porcello a $10M contract. Zack Wheeler is making 23.6 M per year. Don’t tell me that they couldn’t afford him. Brodie does not know how to use $ wisely. He doesn’t know how to construct a roster. Get lost @GMBVW
— #LFGM (@thatmetschick) August 16, 2020
The Phillies regained the lead in the sixth inning thanks to a rookie and a veteran. First, Alec Bohm doubled home the tying run. and then Andrew McCutchen gave them the lead with a no doubt shot to left.
.@TheCUTCH22 is clutch. #RingTheBell pic.twitter.com/HppxLLqONa
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) August 16, 2020
The Phillies tacked on two more runs in the sixth thanks to poor defense by the Mets, and that four run lead was plenty for Wheeler and the bullpen which - hold on to your hats - gave the team two innings of scoreless baseball.
The Phillies will enjoy a day off on Monday before heading to Boston to take on the struggling Red Sox. We’ll soon find out if the Phillies really have turned a corner, or if they’re just really good at beating the Mets.