Phillies Drop Series Opener to Dodgers

The Philadelphia Phillies have scored just one run since Wednesday. What Yu Darvish started on Thursday for the San Diego Padres was continued on Friday by Los Angeles Dodgers' starter Julio Urias.

Urias held Philadelphia scoreless for five innings, allowing just two hits and striking out five. It was a much different outing than his one last week against the Phillies, when he surrendered five runs, including four home runs, on eight hits in six frames.

However, the Phillies lineup of last week had Bryce Harper, this one did not. In fact, Harper's missed the last five games following his PRP injection on Sunday. This isn't a good sign, nor good news for the Phillies, especially when they are struggling as much as they are right now.

Truthfully, though, the Phillies' lineup should not be this lost without Harper. They've looked like a completely different ball club than the one from last weekend. It felt as if they had finally turned it around on their road trip, but unfortunately, it doesn't look like they have.

While the offense has not been performing up to standards, the pitching has been solid. Although Ranger Suarez did not have a great night, allowing three runs on five hits in just three innings, Nick Nelson, James Norwood, and Jeurys Familia performed well in relief. The trio kept it a 3-0 ballgame, pitching five scoreless innings against the Dodger lineup.

Andrew Bellatti pitched the ninth inning; after allowing Freddie Freeman to reach on a single, he was able to advance to third following a throwing error charged to J.T. Realmuto. A Trea Turner sac fly brought him home to make it 4-0.

In the Phillies' half of the ninth, Kyle Schwarber picked up a two-out double against Phil Bickford. It was Schwarber's second double of the night. Realmuto, who has been struggling, stepped to the plate next, and knocked a RBI double to left to end the Phillies' 21 ⅔-inning scoreless streak. 

Craig Kimbrel was then brought in for the one-out save, and he was able to secure the 4-1 win for the Dodgers.

Consistency is something the Phillies have struggled with for quite awhile. They can never quite seem to put it all together. When the offense is performing well, the pitching isn't. When the bullpen is keeping them in games, the offense can't score. It's like clockwork.

The Phillies fall to 18-21, now tied with Atlanta for second place, and are both 7.5 games behind the New York Mets. The two teams are back at it again on Saturday at 6:05 p.m. Aaron Nola will take the mound for Philadelphia, while Mitch White will start for Los Angeles.

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