Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Before Thursday, J.T. Realmuto had not registered an extra base hit since May 29, and had not hit a home run since May 23.
That all changed in one swing of the bat.
Realmuto saw a hanging breaking ball on the first pitch from Arizona reliever Slade Cecconi and launched it to the left-centerfield seats for his eighth homer of the season, adding an insurance run to the scoreboard in a 6-4 Phillies win over the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Realmuto, who had gone 18 straight games without an extra base hit, a streak that was formed around a six-week absence for knee surgery, also connected on a double of Cecconi in the ninth inning, a sigh of relief for the Phillies catcher, who had entered the game in Arizona with a .145 batting average and a .398 slugging percentage in his previous 79 plate appearances.
“It felt good to barrel a couple balls finally,” Realmuto said. “I watched some video with (hitting coach Kevin) Long yesterday and found some things mechanically – like my bat wasn’t staying in the zone for very long. … I was late on fastballs and ahead on off-speed, so I was kind of in between, so I have been trying to work on cleaning my bat path up and staying in the zone.
“To be honest, the first three at bats, it didn’t translate because I felt like I was doing what we worked on but then I went back and watched them, and I wasn’t doing it. So, I made a little more of an adjustment for my fourth at bat.”
Which was his homer.
The win was the third straight for the Phillies, who have now won 4-of-5 for the first time since June 30-July 5. They have an eight-game lead in the N.L. East and a three-game lead on the Los Angeles Dodgers for the best record in the National League.
Kyle Schwarber followed up his monster game in Los Angeles Wednesday with two more hits and a walk, Bryce Harper had three hits and Edmundo Sosa had two hits including an RBI double in support of starting pitcher Kolby Allard, who won his first major league game since 2022.
Allard pitched five innings and allowed just one run – a solo shot by Eugenio Suarez – on six hits. He had three strikeouts and induced three double play groundouts, providing the Phillies with a solid start.
“I thought Allard was really, really good tonight,” said manager Rob Thomson. “He was really efficient. His cutter was good, his changeup was good, and he threw strikes. He has great poise and he’s not afraid of contact. … He’s showed us something during his time here.”
Trea Turner, who is the one Phillies hitter who has not been able to jump start his offense post All-Star break, came through with a clutch, two-run single in a four-run sixth inning, finding a hole on the left side of D-backs reliever Dylan Floro.
“I’m still kind of grinding a little bit,” Turner said. “I’m still hitting a lot of ground balls to the left side, which is an issue, but I’m trying some different things. I’ve started to hit the ball in the air a little bit the last few days, which I think is a good sign.”
Weston Wilson, who was getting the start in place of the injured Austin Hays, started the sixth inning rally with a two-out, RBI double that tied the score 1-1. After a pair of walks, Turner’s hit put the Phillies ahead 3-1 and Harper followed with an RBI single of his own to make it 4-1.
The Phillies relied on the bullpen to shut the door in the final four innings, and although they weren’t perfect, yielding two runs on five hits and four walks in four innings, they were able to pitch out of trouble well enough to preserve the win.
Orion Kerkering gave up a homer to Jake McCarthy in the bottom of the sixth. It was the first home run Kerkering has allowed in his major league career (46 2/3 innings).
“There’s a lot of energy and a lot of fight,” said Thomson, who feels the team he’s seen in the past week is more reminiscent of the team that got off to a historic start and less of the team that struggled for the better part of three weeks. “You can feel it. You can see it.”
HAYS UPDATE
Thomson said that the Phillies will announce an update on Hays on Friday, but that his injury is reminiscent of Brandon Marsh’s hamstring strain that required a brief, I.L. stint.
Hays felt his hamstring grab while running out a groundball in Los Angeles on Wednesday. Hays was not available on Thursday, as the Phillies played short one bench player. They will likely recall someone from Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Friday and make a corresponding roster move, likely placing Hays on the I.L.
Wilson and Johan Rojas should see more action in the short-term while Hays is on the mend.
ON DECK
The Phillies will call on ace RHP Zack Wheeler (11-5, 2.77 ERA) in the second game of the four-game series against the Diamondbacks on Friday. Wheeler will be opposed by Arizona RHP Ryne Nelson (8-6. 4.65).
