For the second straight night in Cincinnati, the Phillies were perfect gamed through four innings. Unlike in Monday’s series opener, they weren’t necessarily saving it for a late comeback.
That’s not because of Ranger Suárez; the Phillies’ offense remained dormant the entire evening, before and after a brief rain delay, only avoiding their first shutout since June 25 via a Bryce Harper homer with two outs in the ninth.
But Suárez’s rough outing was the story of the night, and the most consequential one for the NL East leaders going forward. The line was what it was: 10 hits and six earned runs in 5 1/3 innings, with two walks and just three strikeouts to boot.