Phillies’ bats come alive against Braves to close out June on a high note

The Phillies offense looked lifeless Wednesday night. They drove in only one run and four hits. On Thursday, they woke up, put on their powder blues, and scored a season-high 14 runs in a 14-4 win over the Atlanta Braves.

Four of the Phillies’ starting nine hit home runs, including rookie Darick Hall, whose solo shot in the bottom of the fourth inning also happened to be his first big league hit (Hall recorded his second hit in the bottom of the eight — also a home run). Nick Castellanos hit a much-needed three-run home run in the bottom of the second, his first of the month. Kyle Schwarber hit a three-run home run of his own in the bottom of the third, his 12th of the month, and Rhys Hoskins hit a solo home run in the next at-bat.

The last time the Phillies hit back-to-back home runs was on May 9 in Seattle. The last time they scored seven runs in an inning was June 16 in Washington.

After recording one hit off Braves starter Ian Anderson in the first inning, the Phillies put up seven runs in the second inning, four runs in the third, and one run in the fourth inning. Entering the top of the fifth inning, they had a 12-1 lead, and everyone in their lineup had at least one hit and one run scored.

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Nearly everyone needed an offensive boost after a quiet first two games against the Braves, but no one needed it more than Castellanos. Castellanos went hitless through those first two games and entered Thursday’s game batting .245/.298/.376. When interim manager Rob Thomson penciled the right fielder in the three-hole in place of Bryce Harper, who is out with a left thumb fracture, it seemed like a curious move. But Castellanos had a four-hit day on June 26 and went 2-for-4 on Thursday. Thomson hopes it’s an indication that his slugger has finally found his swing.

“I think he’s coming,” Thomson said of Castellanos. “A ball hit down the line, base hit. Obviously, he hit an opposite-field home run. That’s what he looks like. We’re making strides.”

The Phillies now are 40-37. They host a three-game set against the St. Louis Cardinals this weekend.

In a month when they lost a manager and an MVP, the Phillies posted a 19-8 record. Schwarber, who finished June hitting .272/.385/.680 with 12 home runs, was a big part of the Phillies success.

“Well, tomorrow is June 31,” Thomson said jokingly. “No, it’s just a great month (for Schwarber). On base, slug, he’s really done it all. It seems like every time we’re scoring runs, he’s right in the middle of it, so I hope it keeps going.”

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The left fielder said he doesn’t have any answers as to why he suddenly heats up in the month of June.

“To be honest with you, I really don’t know,” he said. “There’s always a sense that you get more at-bats, but it’s my job to go out there and be ready every single day, and the first two months, I didn’t have the first two months I wanted to have. But I didn’t let that affect the way I wanted to work. I just knew that I had to keep things consistent and things will turn around.”

Does he think he’ll stop hitting in July?

“I hope not,” he said. “Come back in August.”

With a solid offensive cushion behind him, it was a pretty low-stress outing for Aaron Nola. The right-handed starter went seven innings, allowing four earned runs (two home runs) and seven hits with one walk and eight strikeouts. The Braves got on the board in the top of the second off an RBI groundout from Orlando Arcia. Nola allowed a two-run home run to Michael Harris in the top of the fifth and a solo home run to Adam Duvall in the top of the seventh. He finished his night at 110 pitches.

With one out in the top of the second inning Didi Gregorius caught a force out from Bryson Stott at second base. It would’ve been an easy double play, but instead of throwing to first base, Gregorius began to walk off the field, unaware that there were two outs instead of three.

Nola induced a flyout from Harris to avoid any further damage, but it was a sloppy mistake for a 10-year veteran.

“Didi knows better,” Thomson said. “I didn’t have to say anything to him. I just told him, ‘It’s over. We have to move on.’ It was nice of him to get a base hit down the line, make some plays after that. He knows better.”