PHILADELPHIA—Zack Wheeler struck out 11 in seven innings, Bryce Harper hit a three-run homer for the second consecutive day, and Kyle Schwarber added a solo shot to help the Philadelphia Phillies complete a four-game sweep of the San Francisco Giants with a 6–1 win on Monday.
Harper went deep off Giants rookie Mason Black, spoiling the major-league debut of the Giants right-hander, who pitched into the fifth inning against the team he grew up rooting for.
“I hope he enjoyed it with his family and his teammates and everything else, because you only get one debut,” Harper said.
This season’s Phillies are winning as much as the ones Black cheered for as a kid.
The major league-leading Phillies (25–11) won their sixth straight game, have won 10 of their past 11 and 17 of their past 20 to open a three-game lead over Atlanta in the National League East.
The Phillies have also won 10 straight games at Citizens Bank Park, just two wins shy of matching the team record set in 2012. Philadelphia also set a franchise record with 11 straight wins against National League West opponents.
“I feel like we’re winning in different ways every night. And it’s a different player coming up huge, whether it’s a hitter, a pitcher. It’s never the same guy, which is nice,” catcher J.T. Realmuto said. “There’s not too much pressure on one player. We all feel like we play really well together, and we have a lot of fun, and guys contribute on a nightly basis.”
Harper’s eighth homer of the season made it 4–0 against Black (0–1). Black made his first big-league appearance in front of his parents, younger brother, girlfriend, and scores of friends and relatives who made the trip from his hometown of Archibald, Pa.
The 24-year-old Black—named the seventh-best prospect in baseball, per MLB.com—was the Giants’ third-round pick in the 2021 draft out of Lehigh University. Black recorded a 1-2-3 first inning that included strikeouts of Realmuto and Harper, the latter caught looking at an 88 mph changeup.
Black pitched well until running into trouble in the fifth inning. He wound up surrendering five runs on eight hits, with four strikeouts and three walks, in 4 1/3 innings.
Wheeler (4–3) showed the rookie how it was done. He rebounded from a 0–3 start—he allowed six runs total in his first three starts—to win his fourth straight start. Wheeler allowed one run, walked one, and lowered his earned-run average to 1.64.
“Wheels today did what Zack kind of does every time he goes out there,“ Harper said. ”It was fun to watch, and kept us in the game.”
Matt Strahm tossed a scoreless eighth, and Orion Kerkering pitched the ninth to complete the combined five-hitter.
With standout shortstop Trea Turner out at least six weeks with a left-hamstring strain, his replacements are starting to fill the void. Bryson Stott moved from second base to shortstop and made a great grab on a grounder by Wilmer Flores in the first to start an inning-ending double play. Whit Merrifield started at second and gave the Phillies a 1–0 lead with an RBI single in the fourth.
Harper belted his three-run shot in the fifth, and Nick Castellanos, who hit 37 doubles last season, got his first one of the year later in the inning for a 5–0 lead.
Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm went 0 for 4, ending his hitting streak at 18 games.
Giants Scuffling
The Giants lost for the sixth time in seven games and fell to 6–14 on the road. They lost two of three at Boston and finish their 10-game trip with three at Colorado, the only team that trails San Francisco in the National League West. Perhaps there will be a Mile High change of fortune for the Giants—they are 18–8 at Coors Field, with a plus-51 run differential, since 2021.Up Next
The Giants send rookie left-hander Kyle Harrison (2–1, 3.79) to the mound against Rockies right-hander Dakota Hudson (0–5, 5.93) on Tuesday.The Phillies open a two-game interleague set against visiting Toronto on Tuesday. They will send left-hander Cristopher Sánchez (1–3, 3.68) to the mound against Blue Jays righty José Berríos (4–2, 1.44).
