PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Zack Wheeler threw seven shutout innings of four-hit ball and Rhys Hoskins and J.T. Realmuto slugged home runs as the Philadelphia Phillies beat the St. Louis Cardinals 4-0 Sunday night.
The Phillies won two of three games in the series against a team they are chasing for a National League wild-card spot. Since Rob Thomson took over as interim manager following the firing of Joe Girardi on June 3, Philadelphia has gone 20-9 and moved within 1 1/2 games of the Cardinals for the NL’s third wild card. The teams will meet next weekend in St. Louis for a four-game series.
Wheeler didn’t allow more than one Cardinals baserunner to reach in an inning, scattered four singles through seven innings while striking out five and walking one in improving to 7-4 with a 2.66 ERA. It is the third time this season that Wheeler has been a part of a combined shutout, which was finished off by relievers Nick Nelson and Corey Knebel.
Hoskins continued his torrid stretch since June 8. In the last 25 games, the first baseman has a .341 average with nine homers, 17 RBIs, and 18 runs scored. That includes four homers in his last five games after breaking the scoring ice in the bottom of the fourth with a solo homer on a cutter by Adam Wainwright that hung over the middle of the plate.
In the sixth, Hoskins doubled off the center-field wall to start the inning and scored on a Nick Castellanos single up the middle. Two hitters later, Realmuto plated Castellanos with his sixth homer of the season.
Both Hoskins and Realmuto went 2 for 4 — the only hitters for either team with multiple hits.
Wainwright (6-6) allowed four runs on eight hits in 5 2/3 innings, striking out five and walking one.
