Phillies back on top of National League after win against Marlins but Braves will have to….
After Ranger Suárez’s last start against the Atlanta Braves, Rob Thomson said that the Phillies will build him up starting in his next outing against Miami.
Maybe that explains why Suárez began the game with an 87 mph sinker, down from his typical average velocity of 91 mph. Of the 39 sinkers and four seamers he threw, 26 were below 90 mph.
Despite the diminished velocity, Suárez mowed down a relatively weak Miami Marlins lineup. He threw five shutout innings, allowed three hits, two walks and struck out four to earn his 12th win of the season. He threw 82 pitches, a little less than the 90-95 pitches Thomson said he wants him to build up to.
With the victory, the Phillies are now back on top of the National League standings. At 84-56, they are now tied in the standings with the Dodgers. Philadelphia has the tiebreaker over Los Angeles by virtue of winning the season series, 5-1. The lead over Milwaukee for a bye to the Division Series is up to three games with the Brewers off tonight. The division lead could reach eight for the first time since Aug. 16 if the Rockies hold on to beat the Atlanta Braves.
Baldwin is putting an exclamation point on his second full season, one that saw him get moved from Double-A to Triple-A after 52 games. He’s enjoyed hitting with Gwinnett since, especially over the last month, posting a .325/.436/.475 line with more walks (17) than strikeouts (11). He’s now posted an OPS of .896 with 10 homers and a 47/40 BB/K ratio in 59 Triple-A games.
Norby’s .314/.379/.524 slash line over the last month would be impressive on its own. But it stands out even more because he’s spent the majority of that time in the big leagues with the Marlins after coming over from the Orioles in the Trevor Rogers deal. He’s hit .321/.377/.607 with Miami over 61 plate appearances, a .984 OPS improving on his .811 mark over 55 Triple-A plate appearances in the last 30 days.
Things have been happening quickly for Miller, the Phillies’ first-rounder in 2023. He was moved from Single-A to High-A after just 39 games with Clearwater, then started slowly with Jersey Shore (.195/.317/.317 over 32 games through July). Then things started to click for the infielder and a 5-for-5 game to start September capped off a .356/.420/.644 run over the past month that catapulted him up to Double-A, where he’s gone 2-for-8 over his first two games.
Salas’ accelerated timeline in 2023 may have set up some impossible expectations for this season, and while it’s felt like a step back for the talented 18-year-old catcher, there have been positive signs of late with High-A Fort Wayne. Since Aug. 1, Salas is tied for the most doubles in High-A with 12, and his 105 wRC+ puts him as an above-average hitter for the league and level in that span. Mix in his plus defense, and this gives San Diego fans reasons for hope in their top prospect.
