Phillies have offensive outburst to avoid sweep vs. Giants

SAN FRANCISCO – Having used just about all of his bullpen on Tuesday night due to a Taijuan Walker, limited-pitch start, manager Rob Thomson needed some serious innings, and pitches, from starter Jesus Luzardo in a Wednesday matinee game against the San Francisco Giants.

It wouldn't have hurt had the team also found a way to overcome some recent offensive struggles, particularly with runners in scoring position.

Check the boxes on both. Emphatically.

Luzardo has struggled of late, posting a 5.40 ERA in the month of June and got hit hard his last start to the tune of five earned runs in two innings against the Cincinnati Reds last week. Wednesday, the lefty returned to the form that he has flashed many times this season, going seven innings without a run, allowing just three hits and striking out seven on 106 pitches.

The Phillies recovered from Tuesday's devastation to take the final of the three-game series with a 13-0 thumping of the Giants. It eased the memory of losing on a three-run, inside-the-park walk-off home run the night before.

Reassurance wasn't just found in the form of Luzardo. The offense showed more punch than it had in quite a while, ripping 17 hits.

Bryce Harper, who has expectedly struggled since his return from his wrist injury on June 30, had three doubles and a solo home run, all to the left side of the outfield. His four hits in six at-bats came after he'd gone 4-for-24 since coming back.

A 7-run eighth inning, speared by a three-run, opposite field home run by Kyle Schwarber put the game away after the Phillies had scored four times off starter Justin Verlander through his six innings of work.

It's no secret that Harper is the key to this team offensively and his performance on Wednesday is a microcosm is just what he means.

"It's great and it looked like in the last couple of days that he's staying balanced, he's letting the ball travel and the bat speed is there," said Rob Thomson. "That's a big day for him, a big day for us. Really. I really liked his at bats and really like the at-bats up and down the lineup, too. I thought we were really good."

It's no coincidence. When Harper is going well, everyone is that much better. It makes at-bats easier for the likes of Schwarber, who is protected right behind him in the order by Harper. It makes Alec Bohm more effective from the four spot, and so on and so forth.

With an off day Thursday and a final series against the Padres In San Diego before the All-Star break, having Harper find his swing right about now will go a long way as to what this team may be able to do in the proverbial second half of the season after the break.

"It's huge," said Thomson. "Those first three guys (Trea Turner, Schwarber and Harper) are the guys that run the show. They are the guys that we rely on most and especially Harper. If he's going it's contagious. It really is."

While his Modus operandi isn't to talk about himself or put his play above the team, Harper couldn't help but let his feelings known about what could be coming from him moving forward.

"After last night's tough loss and to come back today and have good at-bats and Luzardo threw the ball really well today, also," Harper said. "I just think all around we had great at-bats and put it on an all time great in (Giants starter Justin) Verlander. If I can get ahead in counts and not chase and all those things, obviously my swings gonna play. I feel great, I feel strong. It's just getting good counts and doing damage when I need to. It sounds super simple and it should be simple. It's just doing it and buying in on that and when I'm ahead in the count it's pretty good swings and usually have pretty good opportunities to do that."

Then Harper amped up his reaction to his swing, not in a braggadocious way, but more in a factual one.

"I'm really good," he said. "I really am. I know when I'm going well. I'm one of the best in baseball. I'm healthy, I'm strong, I'm feeling great. It's just putting myself into plus counts. I haven't done that. I feel stronger than ever."  

A stroll past the manager's office on Tuesday after that unimaginable loss had Luzardo and Thomson make a quick encounter.

"He was phenomenal," said Thomson of Luzardo. "He did exactly what he told me he was going to do. Attack the hitters, fill up the strike zone, trust his stuff and just let it happen. He was walking back and forth from the food room there and so I called him in and said, 'what's your approach, tomorrow?' And he told me exactly what he did."

It hasn't been so much that Luzardo has struggled with his "stuff" but more with the mechanics of how he was getting ready to throw it. There has been work on hand location and so many different things and now, using a bigger glove to hide the baseball, he seems to now be able to rely on his good, strong pitching.

"I feel like the times I get in trouble, for the most part, are self-inflicted," said Luzardo. "Long innings, then walks turn into runs almost every time. I can't stand walks. If I'm gonna get beat I'd rather get beat by them hitting it as opposed to me just letting them on. So what we talked about was just attacking. I went back to having my hands a little lower. I felt a lot more comfortable out of the stretch when I was there today. Just filling the zone up, throwing a lot of strikes, hopefully get weak contact and that's what we did today."

After his strong performance, Luzardo knew what the key was to the win and what it is for the future of the team.

"When Bryce goes the whole team goes," he said. "He's obviously a big part of our club, a leader for us. When we see him doing that I feel like we're all getting on a roll."

Kepler exits early

Outfielder Max Kepler fouled a ball on his lower leg late in the game and was removed from it. Thomson said after the game Kepler was in quite some pain but was hopeful that a day off Thursday will go a long way in the healing process.