Alec Bohm took two for the team to bring in two runs, Bryson Stott stayed hot at the plate, the Phillies put together a late comeback in Game 1, then Aaron Nola shut the Mets down in Game 2 to take both halves of a two-game set up in Queens and to bring the four-game home-and-home series back to Philly.
The Phils hit the 30-win mark (30-13) to keep a hold of baseball's best record, and took down an NL East rival just as the schedule was expected to get a bit tougher.
Yet they're still chugging along.
Here are a quick six thoughts (plus a bonus) on the short series that was...
Nicely done, Nola
Aaron Nola was excellent in Tuesday afternoon's start, tossing a complete game shutout to send the home-and-home series back to Philly in a 4-0 win.
Nola had his command and movement locked in from the get-go, tearing so efficiently through the Mets' order that by the end of the fifth, he was perfect with only 59 pitches thrown.
A first-pitch Tyrone Taylor single broke up the perfect game bid right away in the sixth, but Nola pushed through and got out of the frame quickly after, then got through the seventh with only three pitches after Pete Alonso immediately grounded into an inning-ending double play.
The Phillies came into the series banged up (more on that in a bit), with an especially shorthanded lineup on Tuesday and with the bats struggling to take advantage of key situations with runners on throughout.
Nola stepped onto the mound and covered for that in a big way, finishing his day with a gem – nine innings pitched, no runs and only four hits allowed with no walks and eight strikeouts. He threw 109 pitches in total, and improved to 5-2 on the season with a 3.10 ERA.
Check 1-2
Alright, let's talk about that ninth inning from Monday night, because that was something else.
Bryson Stott's streak continued with that solo homer to make it a one-run game.
Then after a Kody Clemens single, a Brandon Marsh walk, and two outs from a pinch-hit Kyle Schwarber strikeout and a Garrett Stubbs pop-out, Whit Merrifield backed himself into a full count against Edwin Díaz...
Or not. First-base umpire said he checked his swing. Bases loaded for Alec Bohm, and...
Hit by pitch to tie the game, 4-4. Orion Kerkering retired the side to force extras.
The years go by, players come and go, but if there's been any one consistency in baseball, it's that if there is a way to lose a game, the New York Mets are going to find it.
But at the same time, give all credit to the Phils for coming back. Good teams find a way to win even when they're not at their sharpest, and they did just that Monday night in Queens.
Again?
Then we go to Tuesday afternoon and the top of the third inning. Mets starter José Buttó is throwing a lot of pitches and struggling to hit the zone.
Johan Rojas led the inning off with a single, Schwarber drew a walk in between outs by Stubbs and Nick Castellanos, and then Stott got the ball four call to load the bases for Bohm once again.
And he got hit by a pitch to bring in a run – again. 1-0, Phils, with the smile saying it all.
Brandon Marsh battled for another walk right after to make it 2-0 with only a single hit on the board.
Strange game, baseball is.
Even stranger: That was enough offense to win the game.
Stott for some security
But some ninth-inning insurance from Stott on an RBI single and then a Bohm ground-rule double over the right-field wall in Utley's Corner was more than welcome, too.
Switching between second and short for the time being, he's heating up just as Trea Turner went out with a hamstring strain, and on Tuesday, when the feeling was that the Phillies could really use at least one more run, he delivered.
A test for depth
The Phillies entered this quick two-game set without Turner (strained hamstring), J.T. Realmuto (sore knee), and Kyle Schwarber (sore back) – although Schwarber did feel up to making a pinch-hit appearance in the ninth Monday night and returned to the leadoff spot on Tuesday.
Then they lost Harper for Game 2 because of a migraine.
They're banged up right now. Bound to happen over the course of a 162-game season. But that's where depth becomes crucial, and as mentioned with the weekend series against the Marlins, the 2024 Phillies probably have most of it to be able to deal with the ebbs and flows of a long march back to October.
Edmundo Sosa went 2-for-3 with a double on Monday night filling in at shortstop, continually proving as one of the most versatile and dependable bench pieces in baseball.
Stubbs stepped in behind the plate at catcher, laid down a perfect bunt to drive in a run and reach base safely on Monday night, then called a gem of an outing with Nola the next day.
Clemens had a key hit in the ninth to help set up the bases-loaded situation to tie it, and has been a pretty serviceable infielder since his call back up, while Cristian Pache and Whit Merrifield offer more flexibility in the outfield – though Merrifield hasn't exactly thrived short-term in the leadoff spot in place of Schwarber.
With the exception of Turner, who still has a few more weeks with his injury, the Phillies weren't expecting to be without Realmuto or Schwarber for long, but were still left in a position where they had to make it work for a couple of games in the meantime, and their bench pieces helped them make it work against the Mets.
Sánchez stays with it
Monday night wasn't one of Cristopher Sánchez's greatest starts – 5.2 innings pitched, 7 hits, 3 earned runs, 3 walks, and five strikeouts – but in situations where a starting pitcher isn't mowing down the opposing lineup, the next best thing they can do is just give their club a chance to win it at the plate.
Sánchez battled through to give the Phillies that chance, particularly in the third when he fell into a 3-1 hole and a bases-loaded jam. He struck out three straight batters to get out of it.
It would take until the seventh and then some luck in the ninth for the Phillies' offense to make a dent, but outside of one more run surrendered, Sánchez and the bullpen held the line long enough for them to and all left with another victory after 10.
Sánchez is another arm who has noticeably improved in the still early part of the season compared to last, and while Monday night was shaky, clubs are hardly ever expecting lights out pitching that deep into the rotation, usually just enough to keep things in check for as many innings as possible.
And Sánchez is more than capable of that.
Another uniform note
The Mets wore their black jerseys and caps Monday night, but something wasn't quite right about them. They were harder to look at, and when going back to compare what changed between this year and last, it clicked: The white outline around the crest, names, and numbers was stripped away in the transfer to the new Nike template. The orange accents got a touch darker, too, which makes it harder for the blue letters and numbers to stand out and robs the uniforms of a whole lot of on-field pop.
Here's a side-by-side comparison thanks to Phillies Nation's Tim Kelly:
Nike and Fanatics have done just a wonderful job with the MLB uniforms this season (yes, that's sarcasm), and keep in mind that they kept the Mets waiting over a month into the season for these due to production issues and delays.
The current uniforms, which Nike designed and Fanatics manufactures, are bad. Major League Baseball knows it, and has already ordered fixes to them that you can read more about HERE.
MORE: Ranger Suárez and his dominant start by the numbers
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