Zack Wheeler, third-inning rally lead Phillies to split in Cincinnati

Final score: Phillies 5, Reds 0

The Phillies needed a mini-stopper of sorts after two uncharacteristically sloppy losses in Cincinnati followed their seven-game winning streak. These days, it’s not hard to choose a stopper in the club’s starting rotation — everyone has been a stopper — but it’s hard to argue against Zack Wheeler as a leading candidate.

Wheeler was that mini-stopper on Thursday, shutting down the Reds through six scoreless innings of one-hit ball. It wasn’t always easy for the Phillies’ ace, though. He did walk four. The first two runners reached in the third before the Reds ultimately loaded the bases; Spencer Steer hit a ball that would’ve cleared the bases if it were a few feet to the right, then flew out to the warning track on a full count to end the inning.

That was it, though. Four of Wheeler’s six frames were perfect, and never again did anyone reach second off him.

And the Phillies’ offense backed him up. Trea Turner went 3-for-5 to boost his average to .336, Bryce Harper homered and Bryson Stott tripled to lead the charge, helping the Phillies leave Cincinnati with a split and move to 16-10.

Highlights

• All the scoring the Phillies needed came in a four-run third against Nick Martinez. After a Nick Castellanos single, Stott brought him home with a three-bagger. It was one of two hits on the day for the second baseman, who was 1 for his last 16 previously.

Stotty starts the scoring! pic.twitter.com/PNi5773CTI

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) April 25, 2024

• Stott scored on a Kyle Schwarber sacrifice fly to make the lead 2-0 — which Harper doubled two batters later. It was his first game back from a brief three-day paternity leave.

Welcome BACK, Bryce Harper pic.twitter.com/IWnJ6oEUYN

— Phillies Nation (@PhilliesNation) April 25, 2024

Notes

• Harper has now homered in his first game back from that paternity list two separate times in his career. The other came on Aug. 26, 2019, his inaugural season with the Phillies, after the birth of Krew, his first child.
• Per the Phillies, Wheeler is one of just seven Phillies pitchers in the Modern Era to have at least 46 strikeouts in their first six games of a season.
• Orion Kerkering (1 2/3 innings) and Jeff Hoffman (1 1/3) combined for three scoreless innings to preserve the shutout.
• The Phillies end the season series against the Reds 3-4. Other than the three wins and four losses themselves, it doesn’t mean much … unless the two teams end up in a two-way tie for one of the National League Wild Card spots. Anyway, that’s for a later date.

Ticket IQ Next Game

• Friday, April 26 vs. San Diego Padres at Petco Park
• 9:40 p.m. Eastern
• NBC Sports Philadelphia; MLB Network (out-of-market only)
• 94 WIP, WTTM 1680

MORE FROM PHILLIES NATION

1. Phillies 2024 Walk-Up Songs
2. Johan Rojas Continues To Look Like Generational Defender
3. Ranger Suárez Is Pitching Like An Ace
4. The Phillies Nearly Acquired Josh Naylor In 2016. It Might Have Drastically Changed Their Future. 
5. Phillies’ Energy Guy Edmundo Sosa Stays Ready In Reduced Role
6. The Evolution Of Ranger Suárez Continues In Second Career Complete-Game Shutout
7. What’s Kept Phillies Pitching So Healthy? Zack Wheeler And Aaron Nola Weigh In…
8. The Inside Story Of How The Phillies City Connect Uniforms Came To Be
9. Why Were The Red Jerseys Ones Eliminated By Phillies?
10. Phillies 2024 Giveaway Schedule