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Andrew Painter - Phillies - Philadelphia Baseball Review
PHILADELPHIA -- The Reds are arriving in Philadelphia carrying the same record as the Phillies.

But right now, these teams feel worlds apart.

At 24-23, the Phillies return home Monday night looking like one of the hottest teams in the National League after sweeping the Pirates in Pittsburgh and winning 15 of their last 19 games. Cincinnati, meanwhile, limps into Citizens Bank Park after dropping four of its first five series in May and getting battered 10-3 Sunday by Cleveland.

The records match.

The baseball doesn’t.

And for a Phillies club that spent much of April searching for consistency, this series suddenly feels like another opportunity to keep building momentum before the calendar turns toward summer.

Because over the last three weeks, the Phillies have started to resemble the team many expected to see all along.

Kyle Schwarber is at the center of it.

The Phillies designated hitter enters the series leading Major League Baseball with 20 home runs while producing one of the most destructive stretches of offense in the sport. Since April 28, Schwarber owns a staggering 227 wRC+ and has homered 11 times, including nine home runs over his last 10 games.

And the timing of his latest tear feels familiar around Philadelphia. Schwarber heating up with the weather has become almost seasonal tradition.

The Phillies are benefitting from far more than one bat, though.

Bryce Harper has looked locked in again, producing a 190 wRC+ since April 28 while walking more than he has struck out during that stretch. Alec Bohm has started to resemble the hitter who earned All-Star recognition two seasons ago. Brandon Marsh and rookie Justin Crawford have provided energy at the bottom of the lineup. The situational hitting that disappeared during the season’s first few weeks has started to return.

A month ago, Citizens Bank Park was showering the offense with boos after the Phillies ranked near the bottom of the National League in scoring.

Now, the lineup suddenly looks dangerous again almost every night.

That resurgence showed itself again Sunday against Paul Skenes.

For two innings, the Pirates ace looked overpowering, striking out four of the first five hitters he faced while firing upper-90s fastballs past Phillies hitters. Then the game shifted. The Phillies extended at-bats, forced Skenes into stressful innings, and finally broke through in the fifth after Adolis García drew the first walk Skenes had allowed since April 13.

By the end of the afternoon, the Phillies had completed another shutout victory behind Zack Wheeler and moved back over .500 for the first time since early April.

“This is what we’re capable of,” Trea Turner said afterward.

Now comes a Reds club searching for answers everywhere — especially on the mound.

Cincinnati’s pitching staff enters the series near the bottom of baseball in virtually every meaningful advanced category. The Reds rank last in Major League Baseball in team strikeout-to-walk ratio, xERA and SIERA, while both the rotation and bullpen have struggled badly throughout May.

The bullpen collapse has been especially glaring. Cincinnati relievers enter the series ranked near the bottom of baseball in walk rate, FIP, xERA and strikeout-minus-walk percentage. Injuries and shifting bullpen roles have turned what once looked like a strength into instability almost nightly.

And that presents a dangerous matchup against a Phillies lineup finally beginning to click.

The opener Monday features rookie Andrew Painter against Cincinnati left-hander Nick Lodolo. Painter continues searching for consistency after his return to the majors, while Lodolo has historically pitched well against the Phillies.

But the larger story of the series may simply be momentum.

A few weeks ago, the Phillies looked stuck in neutral while the Reds were hanging around contention despite inconsistencies.

Now the Phillies suddenly look like a team rediscovering its identity.

And the Reds are arriving at Citizens Bank Park looking like a club trying desperately to stop its season from sliding away.

Monday's Lineup: Turner 6, Harper DH, Bohm 3, Sosa 5, García 9, Stott 4, Realmuto 2, Crawford 8, Kemp 7,   Painter RHP.

Transaction: The Phillies recalled INF/OF Otto Kemp from Lehigh Valley (AAA). To make room on the 26-man roster, INF/OF Felix Reyes was optioned to Lehigh Valley.

Odds: Phillies -110, o/u 9.5

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