For second time in three games, Phillies bats go silent against the Padres

Final Score: Padres 2, Phillies 0

The Phillies were again unable to score against the Padres, dropping their Thursday afternoon game by a score of 2-0. The low scoring affair was consistent with the rest of the series: 3 total runs for the Phillies, 5 for the Padres, 3 shutouts. The Phillies lineup had several of opportunites with runners on base, but ultimately could not drive in a single run.

In the first inning, Rhys Hoskins hit a broken bat single, and with his 2-4 day, he is now batting .348 in the six games he’s been at the top of the lineup. Could Joe Girardi have found his new lead off hitter?

Regardless, there was not much offense for his team again until the sixth inning. Back-to-back singles led to runners at the corners with one out, but a strikeout by Kyle Schwarber and a groundout by Nick Castellanos killed that rally.

Schwarber continues to struggle, and despite a rare plate appearance without the shift, he looked unfocused at the dish – muttering to himself and the umpire. He is hitting .133 with runners in scoring postion this year after hitting .309 last season. His reduced production is even more pronounced with Bryce Harper out for the fourth straight game.

Phillies starter Kyle Gibson pitched well all afternoon and allowed just two runs. Seranthony Dominguez came on in relief in the sixth, then retired two batters in the seventh. It’s encouraging to see him pitch across multiple innings. Brad Hand, Andrew Bellatti and Connor Brogdon all registered hitless appearances to round out another solid bullpen performance.

The Phillies threatened in the seventh and eight innings but, as you guessed, all the runners were left stranded.

Shibe Vintage Sports Starting Pitching Performance

Yu Darvish: 7 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 SO, 0 HR, 108 pitches

Darvish was on cruise control this afternoon in South Philly. The five-time All-Star scattered six soft hits across seven innings without allowing a run. Each inning he held the Phillies lineup to five batters or fewer, thus preventing any consistent offense by the home club.

Kyle Gibson: 5.2 IP, 8 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 7 SO, 0 HR, 100 pitches

The game started out rocky for Kyle Gibson with runners on in the first, but he settled in, striking out five of the next six batters. His only real trouble came in the fourth inning, when he allowed two runs on three consecutive singles and a sacrifice fly. He finished the game one out short of his fourth quality start of the season (in 8 games). It was his first home loss in 2022 (3-1).

Phillies Nugget Of The Game

Thursday afternoon’s businessperson’s special was heavily attended by schoolchildren there to participate in Weather Education Day. Mother Nature duly cooperated by providing – at various times – cloudy, sunny, windy, chilly and warm conditions.

Ticket IQ Next Game

• Friday, May 20 vs. Los Angeles Dodgers at Citizens Bank Park, 7:05 p.m. ET
• LHP Julio Urias (2-3, 3.00 ERA) vs. LHP Ranger Suarez (4-1, 3.72 ERA)
• TV: NBC Sports Philadelphia
• Radio: Sportsradio 94 WIP

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