They drew 13 walks. They collected five hits. They put runners everywhere. And somehow, against a Nationals club piecing together the night with a bullpen game, they scored only three runs.
Zack Wheeler made all of it irrelevant.
In a 3-0 win at Nationals Park, Wheeler did more than deliver seven scoreless innings. He simplified a pitching staff that suddenly needs simplicity.
One night after Cristopher Sánchez struggled and the bullpen surrendered the decisive blow, and one day after Jesús Luzardo landed on the injured list with left shoulder inflammation, Wheeler handed interim manager Don Mattingly exactly what the Phillies needed.
Twenty-one outs from the starter.
Six left for everyone else.
That may be the cleanest October formula the Phillies have right now.
Wheeler allowed four hits, walked one and struck out five over seven innings, throwing 91 pitches. He faced the minimum over his final three frames and finished his night by firing a 96.6 mph fastball past Dylan Crews for strike three.
José Alvarado handled the eighth. Jhoan Duran worked a perfect ninth, striking out two for his 31st save.
No mixing and matching in the sixth. No search for nine or 10 outs from a bullpen that has endured its share of difficult nights.
Just Wheeler, Alvarado, Duran. Ballgame.
The Phillies improved to 84-68 and salvaged a split of the two-game series after losing four of their previous five. Chicago also won Wednesday, leaving Philadelphia a half-game behind the Cubs for the National League’s top Wild Card position.
That race matters. The top Wild Card team gets home-field advantage for the best-of-three opening round.
And if the Phillies reach October, Wednesday offered a reminder of what can still separate them.
Their rotation has become less certain in a hurry.
Luzardo, who is 14-5 with a 2.87 ERA in 29 starts, was placed on the 15-day injured list Tuesday, retroactive to Sept. 12. He is eligible to return on the final day of the regular season, but his postseason availability will depend on how his shoulder responds.
Sánchez has hit his first extended stumble of an otherwise outstanding season. He has allowed 11 runs in 12 1/3 innings over his last two starts.
On Tuesday, Sánchez surrendered five runs over 6 1/3 innings before Jonathan Bowlan entered in the seventh. Daylen Lile greeted him with a first-pitch, three-run homer that broke a 3-3 tie and sent the Phillies to a 6-3 loss.
Wednesday required no such rescue operation.
Philadelphia gave Wheeler an immediate lead despite barely needing to swing the bat.
Nationals opener Jared Simpson retired Kyle Schwarber to begin the game, then walked Trea Turner, Bryce Harper and Luis Arraez in succession. Alec Bohm followed with an RBI single to center, and Bryson Stott drew a bases-loaded walk for a 2-0 lead.
Simpson recorded only one out, allowing one hit and four walks.
The remarkable part was how little the Phillies ultimately did with all the opportunities Washington provided.
Nationals pitchers issued 13 walks, tying a team record, yet Philadelphia scored only three times. Bohm reached base in all five plate appearances, going 2-for-2 with three walks and an RBI. Harper had a hit, walked twice and scored twice. Arraez walked three times.
Still, the Phillies never delivered the blow that turned the game into a rout.
Their only additional run came in the seventh, when Harper singled and Arraez drove him home with a double into the right-center-field gap.
Against a better offense, wasting that much traffic might have mattered.
Wheeler never allowed it to.
Washington’s best opportunity came in the fourth, when CJ Abrams opened the inning with a double. Wheeler retired the next three hitters and stranded him at third.
The Nationals never advanced another runner that far.
And that is what made Wheeler’s outing more meaningful than the opponent or even the shutout.
September is no longer about figuring out what Wheeler is. The Phillies already know.
He is 13-5 with a 2.99 ERA. He has completed seven innings in consecutive starts. Over his last four outings, he has allowed three earned runs in 26 innings — a 1.04 ERA.
The larger question is what the Phillies can build around him.
Luzardo’s shoulder has complicated the rotation. Sánchez’s last two starts have introduced another concern. The bullpen has demonstrated how quickly a close game can turn when too much is required of it.
Wheeler offered the antidote Wednesday.
Get a lead. Get deep into the game. Turn the final six outs over to Alvarado and Duran.
It will not always be this clean. October rarely is.
But on a night when the Phillies received 13 walks and still could not create a comfortable offensive cushion, Wheeler eliminated almost every other variable.
He gave them 21 outs.
With October getting closer, few numbers could mean more.
More Phillies Coverage
Loading Phillies schedule...
Loading NL East standings...
