Remember yesterday when I said get the sweep off the table, get on the plane, never speak of Seattle again?
They heard me.
6-0. Shutout. Bombs from Harper and Schwarber before some people even found their seats. The two ugliest losses of the year, answered with the most professional beatdown imaginable.
We are so back. Again. Do not check how many times I've said that this month.
Schwarbs hit number 40 and I need to talk about it
Kyle Schwarber hit his 40th home run of the season yesterday.
Forty. In August. First guy in baseball to get there this year.
That's four 40-homer seasons in the last five years, all in red pinstripes. You know who else has four 40-homer seasons as a Phillie? Ryan Howard. That's it. That's the whole list.
The man they signed to "add some pop" is now tied with The Big Piece for the most 40-bomb seasons in franchise history. Career homer number 380, by the way. The road to 500 runs directly through Citizens Bank Park, and I will be at the ballpark for every step of it.
And when they asked him about it after the game, he basically shrugged and said it's about stacking at-bats and helping the team win. Of course he did. Never change, big fella.
Luzardo said "not in my house" (it was their house)
Meanwhile Jesús Luzardo was busy committing crimes.
Seven innings. ONE hit. Nine strikeouts, including number 200 on the season.
And here's the part that matters: Cal Raleigh — the guy who spent Monday and Tuesday treating our pitching staff like a Home Run Derby machine, four homers in two games — went 0-for-3 against Luzardo. Struck out all three times. Sat down. Every time.
That's not a pitching line. That's a response.
The Phillies are now 16-2 in his last 18 starts, and his road ERA is 1.80. On the road. Where baseball goes to die. Somebody in the front office better be circling road playoff games on a calendar right now, because this man turns into prime Cliff Lee the second the plane takes off.
Harper is just showing off at this point
Bryce took a 98 mph fastball from Bryan Woo — a guy who had a sub-1.00 ERA at home over his last seven starts there, mind you — and casually deposited it in left-center for number 27.
On-base streak: 29 straight games.
Oh, and he went full extension in front of the right field wall to take extra bases away from Julio Rodríguez in the first inning, because apparently playing through soreness at 100 percent effort every single night is just what he does now. Six months ago we were all nervous about him moving back to right field. Be honest. You were nervous. I was nervous.
He's fine. He's more than fine. He's Bryce Harper.
The takeaway
Monday: it's so over. Wednesday: shutout, franchise history, a one-hitter, and a highlight-reel catch.
Seventy-two hours. That's all it took. This team is gonna kill me and I've never been happier about it.
Angels on Friday, then Arizona to close out the trip. Win those and this West Coast swing goes from "nightmare" to "minor inconvenience we handled."
Also: Birds play the Bengals Friday and the roster gets cut to 53 by Sunday. So if you needed something to argue about between Phillies games, QB2 discourse is right there waiting for you.
Am I crazy, or does Schwarber tying Ryan Howard feel bigger than anyone's talking about? Four 40-homer seasons. In THIS city. Argue with me in the comments.
Sources: NBC Sports Philadelphia — Phillies blast Mariners on milestone day, NBC Sports Philadelphia — Harper, Schwarber homer, Luzardo dazzles in 6-0 win, NBC Sports Philadelphia — Schwarber's 40th home run
