Three Numbers to Remember: Phillies pull off another series split against tough opponent

Jake Arrieta has had two excellent outings thus far in 2020. (Ian D’Andrea)

This weekend, despite serious concerns throughout the roster, the Phillies were able to come away with another series split against a good team.

Wins on Saturday and Monday sandwiched a doubleheader sweep at the hands of the Atlanta Braves, and the Phillies record now sits at 5-6.

Here are three numbers to remember from the Phillies up-and-down series against a fierce division rival:

Bullpen ERA in series – 14.46

It’s no secret: the Phillies bullpen has been really bad.

After an encouraging Saturday in which the trio of Jose Alvarez, Tommy Hunter and Deolis Guerra shut down the Braves in the final three innings, the Phillies bullpen imploded.

On Sunday, they allowed eight earned runs in just 5.1 innings of work. On Monday, they allowed another seven earned runs in a single inning. Their ERA skyrocketed to 9.87, by far the worst mark in the majors.

They were able to win Monday’s game thanks to an impressive offensive showing, but it is clear that the bullpen has to be better for the Phillies to have success this season.

Home runs – Seven

This was not necessarily an easy series for the Phillies offense. In both games of Sunday’s doubleheader, the lineup really struggled to get things going against Braves pitching.

But on Saturday and Monday, they scored a combined 18 runs, and 15 of those runs game via home run. J.T. Realmuto, who has been on fire to start the season, hit two in the series. In addition, Bryce Harper, Didi Gregorius, Jay Bruce, Jean Segura and Roman Quinn each added one of their own.

The Phillies are relying on the long ball to score runs this season. It has led to low scoring when they are unable to do so, but they remain one of the best home run hitting teams in baseball.

Rotation ERA on the season – 3.20

This was an up-and-down series for the rotation. Jake Arrieta and Aaron Nola both pitched extremely well in their starts, going a combined 14 innings and allowing just one earned run and leading the Phillies to a win in both games.

Vince Velasquez was solid, albeit inefficient in his start. While he was unable to make it out of the fifth inning, he did succeed in keeping the Braves potent offense in check.

Spencer Howard struggled in his major league debut, showing good stuff but failing to keep the big bats of the Braves lineup in check.

Overall, though, the Phillies rotation has really impressed this season, especially at the top.

This is an encouraging sign when considering the start the rest of the pitching staff has had.