Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler pitched 6 2/3 strong innings and continued his recent mastery of the host Atlanta Braves, beating them 7-3 on Monday.
Wheeler, who grew up a few miles from Atlanta’s Truist Park, evened his season record at 3-3. He allowed two runs on eight hits and a season-high 10 strikeouts and no walks. He has a 1.38 ERA over his last five starts and picked up his first road win of the season.
Since joining the Phillies in 2020, Wheeler is 3-2 with a 1.87 ERA in eight starts against Atlanta.
Philadelphia closer Corey Knebel pitched a scoreless ninth inning in a non-save situation.
The losing pitcher was rookie Tucker Davidson (1-1), who was knocked out after 2 2/3 innings. He allowed five runs on four hits, four walks and two strikeouts.
The Phillies took control when they scored three times in the second inning. Rhys Hoskins delivered a bases-loaded double in the left-center alley to clear the bases. Hoskins has 14 RBIs in his past 14 games.
Philadelphia added three more runs in the third inning. J.T. Realmuto tripled into the left field corner to drive in a run. Realmuto then scored, along with Johan Camargo, when Roman Quinn doubled. Quinn’s high fly ball appeared to be catchable but dropped in when center fielder Adam Duvall gave way after seeing right fielder Ronald Acuna Jr. charging toward him.
The Phillies upped the lead to 7-0 on Jean Segura’s RBI single in the fourth.
The Braves got a run in the fifth on a run-scoring single by Dansby Swanson. Austin Riley singled home a run in the seventh.
Atlanta scored again in the eighth on Ozzie Albies’ sharp single, making it 7-3.
Acuna went 0-for-5 and had his on-base streak end at 29 games. The streak dated back to June 25, 2021.
–Field Level Media