Philadelphia Phillies Win Pitcher's Duel with Houston Astros in Extras

The Philadelphia Phillies (77-54) needed a win on Monday to extend their win streak to three games. In a pitching duel with the Houston Astros (70-61), it took until the 10th inning, but the Phillies came out on top by a score of 3-2.

Wheeler's Night

On a night when Zack Wheeler (12-6, 2.74 ERA) did not have his best stuff, he still found a way to hold the Astros' potent lineup to two runs in his six innings.

Wheeler's control and command were both an issue early, driving his pitch count up to over 50 pitches in the third. He settled in well, though, getting through six innings on 97 total pitches.

Of Wheeler's 97 pitches, only 46 were in the strike zone. It held his CSW to a lower-than-normal total with only 10 whiffs and 14 called strikes for a 25 percent CSW.

Wheeler's final line would hold six hits and two walks in six innings while striking out six and allowing two earned runs. It would go down as his 20th Quality Start of the season.

Notables

• The Phillies bullpen is back on point, allowing only two hits and one walk in their four innings while striking out two.
• Brandon Marsh would open the scoring for the Phillies in the fifth inning with an opposite-field home run , his 13th of the season, a new career high for Marsh.
• Wheeler's 20th Quality Start of the season makes him the only Major League pitcher to record 20 or more Quality Starts in each of the last three seasons.
• Even with their nine hits tonight, the Phillies only went 2-for-9 with Runners in Scoring Position.
• Phillies' pitching would hold Astros' batters to only 1-for-10 with Runners in Scoring Position.

WPA Leader of the Night

While Bryce Harper would provide the walk-off single in the bottom of the 10th, tonight's WPA leader of the night would be reliever Matt Strahm for his work in the top of the 10th.

Entering the game with the Manfred Man on second and none out, Strahm would pitch a clean inning, allowing no hits and no walks with one strikeout and leaving the Manfred Man stranded at third. Strahm would pick up the win, making him 6-2 on the season. He would finish the night with a WPA score of 30.7.

Next Up

Next up for the Phillies is game two of this three-game series, and what looks to be another instant classic in Justin Verlander at Aaron Nola on Tuesday. The first pitch for Tuesday's game is scheduled for 6:40 PM EST. The game will be broadcast nationally on TBS (out-of-market only) as well as on NBC Sports Philadelphia and Space City Home Network.

Phillies fans can listen to the game on 94 WIP or WTTM 1680.