The Philadelphia Phillies completed a four-game sweep of the New York Mets with a 6-4 win in Thursday’s series finale. Philadelphia now has a commanding 11-game lead in the division as the team eyes a deep postseason run.
The Phillies enjoyed strong starting pitching performances throughout the four-game series. But Thursday’s outing by Jesus Luzardo was particularly impressive.
The seventh-year starter and closer Jhoan Duran combined to throw eight perfect innings. It was just the second time in 50 years that the Phillies didn’t allow any baserunners after the first inning, per MLB.com’s Paul Casella. The only other time the team accomplished the feat was in Roy Halladay’s perfect game on May 29, 2010.
Jesus Luzardo dominated after a rocky start in Phillies’ 6-4 win
Thursday’s achievement is all the more impressive considering that Luzardo got rocked early in the game. The Mets tagged the veteran lefty for four runs on five hits in the first frame. But after that, Luzardo locked in. He was perfect over the next seven innings, allowing no runs, no hits and no walks.
The Phillies battled back and took a 6-4 lead in the sixth inning. Duran then got the call in the ninth and struck out the side, completing an eighth straight perfect inning.
Overall, Luzardo gave up four runs on five hits and zero walks with 10 strikeouts in eight innings. He earned his 14th win of the season and Duran picked up his 29th save of the year.
The victory capped a four-game sweep of the Mets. And, despite missing Zack Wheeler, the Phillies' rotation shined throughout the series. Aaron Nola out-dueled New York rookie Nolan McLean in the opener, tossing six scoreless innings.
Ranger Suarez set a new career-high with 12 strikeouts in Tuesday’s game. He also went six scoreless innings allowing just one hit and three walks as Philadelphia won 9-3. And Cristopher Sanchez improved to 13-5 after giving up one run in six innings on Wednesday.
While Sanchez dominated, Clay Holmes struggled against the Phillies. He was chased from the game after four innings, allowing four runs on six hits and three walks. Philadelphia went on to win 11-3.
The Phillies’ outscored the Mets 27-10 over the series. The team begins a three-game set against the Kansas City Royals on Friday.
