Final Score: Phillies 6, Reds 1
The Phillies were six outs away from shocking both the baseball world and themselves. Matt Moore, who essentially made a spot start for a team with a four-man rotation, threw six shutout innings without allowing a hit. He gave way to the bullpen after 76 pitches and Héctor Neris kept the line moving with an easy 1-2-3 seventh inning.
Archie Bradley, who came into this game with a 0.48 ERA since the last time he surrendered a home run (June 27), was tasked with getting the next three outs and keeping the no-hitter alive. He accomplished the former, but failed to do the latter as Tyler Stephenson cracked an opposite field solo home run to put the Reds on the board.
That didn’t seem to matter much as the Phillies continued to add on runs a half-inning later. Bryce Harper, who cooled off a bit this week, scored a run on a triple in the eighth and came home after pitcher Sean Doolittle gave up on the play and disregarded a throw from his shortstop. The shortstop Kyle Farmer was charged with a throwing error. A solo home run from Andrew McCutchen made it 6-1.
While Ronald Torreyes isn’t known for his power bat, he does get clutch hits when the team needs it the most. Thanks to some superb bat speed, the utility man launched a 98 mph sinker down the left field line for a solo home run to give the Phillies a 1-0 lead in the third.
Some clutch two-out hitting against Castillo extended the Phillies’ lead. J.T. Realmuto’s RBI double in the sixth along with Travis Jankowski’s pinch-hit single in the seventh gave the Phillies a 3-0 lead. It was all the Phillies needed as Moore, Neris, Bradley and Ian Kennedy combined to surrender only three hits and one run in a winning effort.
The Phillies will go for a much-needed series win against Cincinnati on Sunday. Aaron Nola gets the ball against Sonny Gray.
Shibe Vintage Sports Starting Pitching Performance
Luis Castillo: 6 2/3 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 8 SO, 1 HR, 106 pitches
Luis Castillo’s stuff was nasty enough to fool Phillies hitters, but some timely hitting with two outs from the Phillies was the difference between a good, but not excellent outing. 2021 has been a down year for Castillo, but he has the ability to both miss bats and locate his high 90s to low 100s fastball with precision. It’s a good sign that the Phillies offense was able to do something against a pitcher who looked unhittable at times.
Matt Moore: 6 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 SO, 76 pitches
It’s not everyday Phillies fans are clamoring for one more inning of Moore. He threw six shutout inning, allowing only two walks and no hits. It’s by far his finest outing in a Phillies uniform. He maxed out at 96 pitches in a July 22 start against Atlanta, but threw just 10 pitches his last time out on Aug. 10. There was no way Girardi was going to let him finish the game, but it seems like Moore is at peace with the decision.
Phillies Nugget Of The Game
Saturday was Moore’s first start since Aug. 13, 2017 in which he has thrown at least six innings, walked two or fewer batters and struck out at least eight hitters. His longest hitless outing prior to Saturday lasted three inning.
Ticket IQ Next Game
- Sunday, Aug. 15 vs. Cincinnati Reds at Citizens Bank Park
- 1:05 p.m. ET
- TV: NBC Sports Philadelphia
- Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
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