Zack Wheeler’s May magic didn’t last through his final start of the month.
Chris Sale decisively outdueled Wheeler on Thursday night and the Braves picked up a 9-3 win over the Phillies to finish a doubleheader day at Citizens Bank Park.
The 36-20 Phillies split the doubleheader and won the three-game series vs. the 26-29 Braves.
Wheeler conceded a run for the first time since May 6 and dropped to 6-2 on the season. The Phillies’ ace gave up six runs and four hits over 5 and 1/3 innings, struck out six and walked four.
Sale logged six shutout innings, allowed two hits and three walks, and struck out eight.
Wheeler tossed hard, sharp four-seamers early. He operated effectively up in the zone, jammed several Braves batters and appeared in complete command of the game.
Sale and Wheeler struck out five hitters apiece over the first three innings. Atlanta was hitless until a broken-bat Marcell Ozuna knock with one out in the fourth.
The floodgates suddenly opened. Matt Olson and Austin Riley doubled, Ozzie Albies’ fly ball snuck over the right-field wall, and the Braves grabbed a 4-0 lead. The flurry snapped Wheeler’s scoreless innings streak at 26.
“The fastball was really good,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “As we got into the game, he just got behind in the count quite a bit. A lot of foul balls threw his pitch count up. Even in the fourth inning, it was a couple of broken-bat base hits, a ground ball down the line. And Albies hits the ball 94, 95 miles an hour and it gets out of the ballpark. Those things happen. Early, I thought he was really good.”
Meanwhile, Sale slung his way through the Phillies’ lineup and looked the part of last year’s National League Cy Young winner.
He didn’t cruise forever.
The Phillies rallied in the bottom of the fifth inning. Weston Wilson earned an eight-pitch leadoff walk, and the bases loaded with two outs when Sale hit Trea Turner and walked Kyle Schwarber. However, the Phils couldn’t cash in. Alec Bohm bounced a 97.5 mph Sale fastball to shortstop and the Braves maintained their four-run edge.
Atlanta tacked on in the sixth inning. Wheeler exited with runners on first and second and one out. Both Braves scored when Luke Williams lined a Carlos Hernandez heater that shot past Bohm’s outstretched glove at first base. Bohm replaced Bryce Harper (right elbow contusion) at first for the full doubleheader.
The Braves piled on a bit more in the seventh with a two-run Austin Riley blast off of Joe Ross.
Wilson thought he’d put the Phillies on the scoreboard in the bottom of the seventh, but he learned after rounding the bases that his long fly to left field was ruled narrowly foul.
The Phillies finally posted two runs in the eighth and one in the ninth — J.T. Realmuto’s ground out, Edmundo Sosa’s single and Turner’s base hit were the RBIs — but never made a serious comeback push.
On deck
The Phillies will host the 29-28 Brewers in a three-game weekend series.
Taijuan Walker (2-3, 2.97 ERA) is scheduled to face Quinn Priester (1-2, 4.23 ERA) on Friday night in the series opener. Lefties Jesus Luzardo and Ranger Suarez are slated to start the final two games.
On the Phillies rotation front, Aaron Nola threw a bullpen session Thursday between games. There’s no firm timeline yet for his return from a right ankle sprain and Nola said Tuesday he thought he’d “probably” need a rehab assignment.
“Really good,” Thomson said of the session. “Twenty-six pitches. (Pitching coach Caleb Cotham) said he looked good, he felt good. Don’t know what the next step is because we’ll find out tomorrow when he comes in how he’s feeling.”
Phillies add Josh Walker
The Phillies announced minutes after the final out that they acquired relief pitcher Josh Walker from the Blue Jays in exchange for cash considerations. The team optioned Walker to Triple A Lehigh Valley.
Walker, 30, has a 6.59 ERA in 27 career MLB appearances. The 6-foot-6 lefty had a 6.30 ERA with the Buffalo Bisons this season in Triple A. He struck out 16 hitters and walked seven over 10 innings.
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