PHILADELPHIA — The Phillies offense looked lifeless on Wednesday night. They drove in only one run and four hits. On Thursday, they woke up, put on their powder blues, and decided to score a season-high 14 runs in a 14-4 win over the Atlanta Braves.
Four of the Phillies’ starting nine hit home runs, including rookie Darick Hall, whose solo shot in the bottom of the fourth inning also happened to be his first big league hit. Nick Castellanos hit a much-needed three-run home run in the bottom of the second, his first of the month. Kyle Schwarber hit a three-run home run of his own in the bottom of the third, his 12th of the month, and Rhys Hoskins hit a solo home run in the next at-bat. Hall later added a two-run shot in the eighth.
The last time the Phillies hit back-to-back home runs was on May 9 in Seattle. The last time they scored seven runs in an inning was June 16 in Washington.
After recording one hit off Braves starter Ian Anderson in the first inning, the Phillies put up seven runs in the second inning, four runs in the third, and one run in the fourth inning. Entering the top of the fifth inning, they had a 12-1 lead, and everyone in their lineup had at least one hit and one run scored.
Nearly everyone needed an offensive boost after a quiet first two games against the Braves, but no one needed it more than Castellanos. Castellanos went hitless through those first two games and entered Thursday’s game batting .245/.298/.376. When interim manager Rob Thomson penciled the right fielder in the three-hole in place of Bryce Harper, who is out with a left thumb fracture, it seemed like a curious move. But Castellanos had a four-hit day on June 26 and went 2 for 4 on Thursday. Thomson hopes it’s an indication that his slugger has finally found his swing.
The Phillies now are 40-37. They host a three-game set against the St. Louis Cardinals this weekend.
Good outing for Nola
With a solid offensive cushion behind him, it was a pretty low-stress outing for Aaron Nola. The right-handed starter went seven innings, allowing four earned runs (two home runs) and seven hits with one walk and eight strikeouts. The Braves got on the board in the top of the second off an RBI groundout from Orlando Arcia. Nola allowed a two-run home run to Michael Harris in the top of the fifth and a solo home run to Adam Duvall in the top of the seventh. He finished his night at 110 pitches.
Mistake from Gregorius
With one out in the top of the second inning Didi Gregorius caught a force out from Bryson Stott at second base. It would’ve been an easy double play, but instead of throwing to first base, Gregorius began to walk off the field, unaware that there were two outs instead of three.
Nola induced a flyout from Harris to avoid any further damage, but it was a sloppy mistake for a 10-year veteran.
