The Phillies may have entered the All-Star break red-hot, but they came out of it ice cold. After sweeping a three-game set in Miami last weekend, the Phillies dropped the first game post-break to the Cubs 15-2. It was a disappointment all around as their offense, pitching and defense were nowhere to be found.
Kyle Gibson reverted back to his mediocre ways on Friday, surrendering six earned runs over only 4.1 innings. Jeurys Familia brought his ERA back up to its usual spot around 5.00, now sitting at 4.99. Corey Knebel and Nick Nelson each tossed scoreless frames before newly activated lefty JoJo Romero gave up three more in 1.0 inning of work. With the game at 10-1 in the ninth, backup catcher Garrett Stubbs took the mound and allowed five more to cross the plate, bringing the Cubs up to a laughable 15 runs on the day.
The defense can be blamed for some of Gibson’s struggles, as a Rhys Hoskins throwing error in the fifth led to the wheels coming off in an up till then close game, but with the way the whole time played it clearly just wasn’t their night.
The offense was equally miserable, as they couldn’t get anything going after a Kyle Schwarber lead off home run. They stranded the bases loaded in the bottom of the third, and failed to threaten after that. The only other offense came from Darick Hall, who launched a pinch-hit solo shot in the ninth inning. Nick Castellanos had his customary oh-fer, while no one on the Phillies managed a multi-hit night.
Luckily for the Phillies, the Cardinals fell to the Reds tonight, meaning the Phils still sit in a playoff spot. However, tonight’s blowout will need to be put in the rear view mirror quickly, and the Phillies will have to get back on track tomorrow against these same Cubs.