Atlanta rookie Spencer Schwellenbach continued his mastery of the visiting Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday, pitching the Braves to a 3-2 win in the rubber game of their three-game series.
The victory allowed the Braves to cut Philadelphia’s lead in the National League East to six games. The Braves lead the season series 6-3.
Schwellenbach (5-6) pitched 6 2/3 innings and allowed two runs on three hits — retiring 18 straight batters at one point — with one walk and nine strikeouts. In two starts against Philadelphia, the rookie has pitched 12 2/3 innings and allowed three runs with 15 strikeouts.
Raisel Iglesias pitched the ninth inning and struck out the side to earn his 28th save. Ten of his 12 pitches were for strikes.
Philadelphia starter Cristopher Sanchez (9-9) threw six innings and allowed three runs on nine hits, one walk and eight strikeouts. The left-hander allowed the leadoff batter to reach in each of the first four innings.
The Phillies scored a run in the first inning when Trea Turner scored on Nick Castellanos’ infield grounder.
The Braves tied the game in the second on Gio Urshela’s ground-rule double that drove in Ramon Laureano.
Atlanta took a 2-1 lead in the third when Matt Olson doubled off the base of the right field wall, scoring Whit Merrifield.
Adam Duvall broke a lengthy home run slump in the sixth inning to give the Braves a 3-1 lead. Duvall, who went 3-for-3, hit his 11th homer, a 421-foot shot to center field, for his first longball since July 26. It was only the sixth homer allowed by Sanchez this year.
Philadelphia scored a run in the seventh inning to cut the lead to 3-2. Bryson Stott singled, the team’s first baserunner since the first inning, and scored on J.T. Realmuto’s double to right. Reliever Pierce Johnson entered and struck out Brandon Marsh to end the inning.
Johnson walked two batters in the eighth inning but got Turner to ground into an inning-ending double play to douse the rally.
–Field Level Media
