Painter and red-hot Phillies roll to eighth straight win, sit three games back in NL East

PHILADELPHIA – The hits start coming and they don’t stop coming. 

It’s not exactly what the 90s’ band Smash Mouth sang in their hit song “All-Star”, but the sentiment rings true. The Phillies offense cannot stop hitting in August.

The red-hot lineup, which included three bench players Saturday night, pounded 15 hits in a 12-3 rout over the St. Louis Cardinals at Citizens Bank Park. 

The victory pushed the Phillies to a season-best 14 games over .500 and it’s the team's longest win streak since late May of last year. 

The offense put together one of its best games of the season even with Interim manager Don Mattingly penciling in nearly his entire bench in the starting lineup with Bryan De La Cruz, Derek Hill and Edmundo Sosa. 

“I need to keep those guys in the mix,” Mattingly said. “I have to keep them ready to play. These guys have hardly seen any lefties. If I don’t ever put them in to play, it’s tough.” 

The trio delivered, going a combined 4-for-10 with De La Cruz and Sosa each driving in a pair of runs while Hill smacked an RBI double. 

The Phillies set the tone in the first inning against rookie starter Quinn Matthews, tagging the southpaw for three runs highlighted by an Alec Bohm RBI single and a two-run double from Sosa. 

In the third inning, they sent eight men to the plate, stringing four hits together including De La Cruz’s two-run single to make it a 5-0 lead. J.T. Realmuto added a sac fly and Hill followed with his double and it was 7-0 after four innings. 

Bryce Harper clobbered his 26th homer of the season to push his on-base streak to 25 games with a three-run shot in the sixth. Kyle Schwarber homered off Cardinals’ catcher Pedro Pages in the eighth as St. Louis waved the white flag. 

In all, 10 of the 12 batters who had a plate appearance recorded a hit. Seven different hitters drove in a run. 

It’s that kind of stretch for the Phillies who have won 15 of their 20 games here in August. 

The offense provided plenty of support for Andrew Painter. The rookie twirled a dominant and career-high seven innings allowing just one run while matching a career-best with eight punchouts showing why he could be a future ace for the team.

“The biggest difference for me is his body language on the mound,” Mattingly said on what’s been the most noticeable change for Painter. 

“It’s his presence on the mound, he’s constantly on the attack, he’s just been aggressive.” 

The hard-throwing righty did just that. He generated a career-high 20 whiffs and threw 22 of 27 first-pitch strikes, setting up the rest of his arsenal which was on full display.

He recorded his eight strikeouts on four different pitches, including his changeup, slider, curveball, and fastball, which saw another tick up in velocity, averaging 97.3 m.p.h., compared to his season average of 96.5 m.p.h. He emptied the tank in his final inning, touching 99 on his 100th pitch. 

“It doesn’t look as hittable now, obviously,” Mattingly said on Painter’s fastball which was battered earlier in the season. “He’s getting a lot more swing and miss. “I think him just being confident and letting it go…but locating it, that’s what you’re seeing when he lets the ball go.” 

It’s another step in the right direction for the once highly-touted pitching prospect. The 23-year-old boasts a respectable 3.56 ERA in his five starts since being recalled at the end of July. Quite the turnaround from the 7.06 ERA he yielded in his first 14 appearances. 

Mattingly was asked about the potential of Painter turning in outings like he had Saturday night consistently. 

“If he can turn into something like that, that’s a monster.” 

The Phillies have turned into a monstrous force in the National League, breathing down the necks of the Braves sitting just three games out of first in the NL East.