On Sunday night in Cleveland, the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Cleveland Guardians 3-0 in the final game of a three-game series. Kyle Schwarber hit two home runs, and Zack Wheeler pitched seven strong innings. With the win, the Phillies took the series two games to one.
Kyle Schwarber gave the Phillies an early lead in the second inning when he hit a solo home run to right field on the third pitch he saw from Guardians starter Luis Ortiz. That home run extended Schwarber’s on-base streak to 46 games, which is the longest active streak in Major League Baseball. It is also the fourth-longest in Phillies history. Only Mike Schmidt has a longer streak for the team, reaching base in 56 straight games between 1981 and 1982.
Luis Ortiz stayed in control after that early run. He pitched six full innings, giving up just four hits and one run. He walked two and struck out nine. This was Ortiz’s fourth appearance against the Phillies in his career, and despite the loss, his ERA against them remains low at 0.95. He fell to 2-4 on the season.
The Guardians had a chance to take the lead in the first inning. Steven Kwan and José Ramírez hit singles, putting two on base. But Daniel Schneemann flied out to left field, and Carlos Santana grounded into a double play to end the threat.
In the sixth inning, they had another opportunity. Kwan hit a double and Schneemann walked, putting two on with one out. However, Ramírez lined out and Santana struck out swinging, ending the inning with no runs.
Zack Wheeler started for the Phillies and held the Guardians to just three hits over seven innings. He walked two and struck out eight. Wheeler only allowed two runners past first base and improved to 4-1 for the season. He has now won three straight starts. The Phillies have also won 11 of their last 14 games.
In the eighth inning, Phillies second baseman Bryson Stott drew a walk off Guardians reliever Tim Herrin. Stott then stole second base. Bryce Harper hit a deep fly ball to left, but Kwan caught it at the wall. With two outs and one on, Schwarber hit a 397-foot home run to center field, which gave the Phillies a 3-0 lead. It was his second homer of the night, 15th of the season, and 32nd career multi-homer game.
After Wheeler left the game, José Alvarado pitched a scoreless eighth inning. In the ninth, Jordan Romano came in to close. He earned his third save of the season, sealing the Phillies’ three-hit shutout.
The Guardians only managed three hits all game, the same total they had in Saturday’s loss. Their best hitters, including Ramírez and Santana, could not deliver with runners on base.
Cade Smith came in after Ortiz and pitched well in the seventh. He allowed a single to Alec Bohm but struck out J.T. Realmuto and Johan Rojas. Max Kepler grounded out to shortstop Gabriel Arias, who made a clean play to end the inning.
After Schwarber’s second homer, Matt Festa came in to finish the eighth and got Nick Castellanos to ground out, ending the inning. Emmanuel Clase took the mound for Cleveland in the ninth. Pitching in a non-save situation after a few days off, he walked J.T. Realmuto but kept the Phillies from adding to their lead.
The Phillies improved to 5-1 on their road trip, which included stops in Tampa Bay and Cleveland. They return home to face the St. Louis Cardinals next. Cristopher Sánchez (4-1, 2.89 ERA) will start for Philadelphia. The Cardinals will send Matthew Liberatore (3-3, 3.07 ERA) to the mound.
The Guardians will stay at home to begin a three-game series against the Milwaukee Brewers. Right-hander Ben Lively (2-2, 3.46 ERA) is scheduled to pitch for Cleveland. Freddy Peralta (4-2, 2.18 ERA) will start for Milwaukee.
Since April 8, the Guardians have gone 20-11. This game was just their 11th loss during that stretch. Even though the offense struggled, Luis Ortiz’s strong outing was a positive sign. The Guardians hope that Lane Thomas returns soon and that help from Triple-A Columbus may boost the lineup.
Schwarber now leads MLB with 15 home runs. During his 46-game on-base streak, he has hit 16 home runs, driven in 37 runs, and scored 33 times. His streak began on September 23, 2024, against the Cubs, one day after he went hitless against the Mets.
In this game, the difference came down to two things: Schwarber’s power and Wheeler’s control. That was enough to carry the Phillies past a Guardians team that could not take advantage of its chances.
