August 30, 2026
Gary A. Vasquez/Imagn Images via Reuters Connect
Edmundo Sosa and the Phillies keep winning games in their last at-bat, and keep changing the narrative about their plate discipline.
The Phillies needed a pick-me-up after a minor toe stub in Seattle that started their West Coast trip, and a few unlikely providers were more than happy to deliver exactly what they needed.
It started with Edmundo Sosa's pinch hit grand slam with two outs in the ninth on Friday, capping a wild comeback against the Angels in Anaheim, and followed with another last at-bat win Saturday, with mightily struggling shortstop Trea Turner breaking through with a two-run single in the 10th for another last at bat win.
On Sunday, Zack Wheeler snapped out of a rare month-long funk to pitch 6.0 very strong innings, another Sosa home served as the go-ahead run and the Phillies tacked on late insurance runs to complete the sweep, their fourth sweep in the past five series.
If the Phillies end up making a deep postseason run – heck, if they can find a way to win the National League East – they'll look back on their August turnaround that served as the spark plug.
After a 9-15 July, the Phillies tore up MLB in August, going a league-best 20-7. They not only retook command of the No. 2 NL Wild Card spot but also put pressure on the NL East-leading Braves, who lead by 5.0 games. The Phillies and Braves are slated for seven games in September, so their destiny is in their control.
With the calendar turning to the regular season's finale month, the Phillies appear to have answered some season-long questions about their lineup, rotation, and bullpen.
Before Sunday's game, the Phillies had posted MLB's highest batting average (.272) and on base percentage (.357) while also posting the third-highest OPS (.831) despite ranking among the sport's bottom third in home runs, which shows they've been able to find the gaps and manufacture runs instead of solely relying on the long ball.
They had also struck out the second-fewest times of any MLB team in August, another significant adjustment that could potentially forecast better postseason hitting success than they've shown over the past three seasons.
On the mound, the Phillies got another strong outing from Andrew Painter on Friday, as the rookie has continued to hold down the fifth starter job that had been a major sore spot all season.
Painter's track record of struggling in the first inning and then settling in repeated against the Angels, as he survived a three-run first to retire 15 of the next 15 batters with just one walk erased by an inning-ending double play that he helped start.
Painter struck out five of those 15 to go 6.0 innings, allowing just those three runs on 94 pitches with six strikeouts, posting an August ERA of 3.95 and 1.02 WHIP.
And the biggest shot in the arm came from Wheeler, who entered Sunday's start with an atypical 0-3 record and 8.58 ERA since July 27 but regained his normal form as the Phillies chased the sweep. Wheeler went 6.0 innings for the first time since July 21 and held the Angels to one run on four hits, then became the beneficiary of Sosa's second homer in the series, a solo shot in seventh that broke a 1-1 tie.
Centerfielder Derek Hill had helped preserve that tie with yet another highlight-reel catch with a runner on second and one out.
Walking Hill-light reel pic.twitter.com/9obrnhnDQE
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) August 30, 2026
With the offense humming, the bullpen starting settle into roles, and starting pitching still serving as the catalyst, the Phillies have developed a penchant for the dramatic win.
Their three-walk off wins in August represents one-third of their entire total for the season, and they continue to find ways win close games and have magic moments like Sosa's grand slam.
THESE PINCH HITS LOVE SOSA pic.twitter.com/Pisn2j2o5i
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) August 29, 2026
The bullpen also came through in all three games. Jose Alvardo, rookie Alex McFarlane and Jonathan Bowlan provided three innings of scoreless relief for Painter, and despite Bowlan's blown save Saturday on a back to back night for the right-hander, Jhoan Duran's two scoreless innings cleared the way for the comeback.
McFarlane, José Alvarado and Orion Kerkering combined for three innings of one-run relief of Wheeler to make sure the Phillies left Anaheim with another three-game sweep. The bullpen combined to allow just two runs in nine innings for the series.
Turner, who has been mired in a slump for much of the month and chasing nearly everything near the zone, appears to be coming around, with at least one hit in every game of the series.
He finally caught a break Saturday with a two-run single in the 10th on a weak grounder past a drawn-in infield after Kyle Schwarber had put the Phillies up one batter earlier, then got another hit in a two-run eighth Sunday as the Phils secured an insurance run.
"I love it. It's so bad but it feels so much better," Turner said Saturday, via NBCSP, adding that he thought an earlier at-bat was a way better swing but turned into an out. "And then, just you know, take a right turn back to the dugout. And so it's kind of funny.
"It's like, you know, I thought I saw the ball pretty well on that [last] pitch and I thought I was going to hit it pretty hard, and then obviously capped it and ended up working out."
"It's so bad, but it feels so much better."
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) August 30, 2026
Trea Turner finally found some grass with a huge two-run single, giving the Phillies much-needed insurance in extras. | @WapnerNewman pic.twitter.com/SxI4sV6Gf9
It's working out right now for the whole team, with one final series on the road swing remaining against the Diamondbacks, who are currently battling the Padres for the third NL Wild Card spot but remain 6.0 games in the loss column behind the Phillies for the second spot.
The Phillies have an opportunity put more distance between themselves and the Diamondbacks, keep pressuring the Braves, and continue to stay hot as thecalendar turns to September.
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