The Philadelphia Phillies continue to slug their way through the month of August.
The power surge has catapulted the Phillies to a season-best 16 games above .500 following a 12-7 victory over the Angels on Tuesday. Philadelphia will now go for a sweep on Wednesday when it faces visiting Los Angeles in the finale of a three-game series.
Alec Bohm, Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, Trea Turner and Bryson Stott each homered on Tuesday as the Phillies extended their winning streak to five games. Philadelphia has gone deep 57 times this month.
“I think good hitters are helping good hitters,” Bohm said during a postgame interview on NBC Sports Philadelphia. “We have a deep lineup. Everybody trusts everybody.”
After Stott’s homer in the seventh inning, the passionate fans at Citizens Bank Park began chanting each Phillies player’s name.
It was hard not to notice.
“We love it,” Bohm said. “There’s great energy in the ballpark. It makes it fun to come to work.”
The Phillies matched their season high with five homers in a single game. With one more contest in August, they still have a chance to add to their mammoth total for the month.
“I expected the power to come,” Philadelphia manager Rob Thomson said.
Phillies left-hander Cristopher Sanchez (2-3, 3.33 ERA) would likely welcome that run support when he makes his 14th start of the season on Wednesday.
In Sanchez’s last start, he allowed five hits and two runs in six innings against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday to earn the victory.
Sanchez has one career appearance against the Angels. He threw 1 1/3 innings of scoreless relief against Los Angeles back on June 5, 2022.
The struggling Angels will look to avoid a series sweep on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, Luis Rengifo hit two solo homers and singled, while Randal Grichuk had three hits, including a solo home run. Shohei Ohtani also had three hits and two RBIs.
Nolan Schanuel chipped in with two hits and matched the franchise record for longest hitting streak to start a career at nine games. He was the Angels’ first-round pick in the 2023 draft.
“We hit some balls really hard,” Los Angeles manager Phil Nevin said of Tuesday’s game. “We made some hard outs.”
It was a bizarre day for the Angels, as ESPN reported that starting pitcher Lucas Giolito and relievers Matt Moore, Dominic Leone and Reynaldo Lopez were among six players that the team placed on waivers. Outfielders Hunter Renfroe and Grichuk were the other two.
Los Angeles would potentially receive salary relief, and the players could sign with any team if they are claimed on Thursday. The six players are expected to be on the roster for Wednesday’s game.
“It’s front office decisions that don’t affect our room,” Nevin said. “We’ve got to go out and win some games and play the games right.”
Left-hander Reid Detmers (3-10, 5.03) is scheduled to start for the Angels in the series finale.
In Detmers’ most recent outing, he gave up seven hits and four runs in five innings against the Cincinnati Reds last Wednesday. He came away with a no-decision.
Detmers has never faced the Phillies.
Los Angeles outfielder Mickey Moniak experienced some back soreness on Tuesday, one day after making a stellar catch against the center field fence. He is listed as day-to-day.
–Field Level Media
