Better late: Phillies 6, Rockies 1

The Phillies offense takes some time to get going

It was Opening Day, members of the Super Bowl champs were on hand, and the fans were lively. The Phillies’ offense rewarded them by providing almost nothing to cheer about for the first six innings against the Colorado Rockies. They managed zero runs and just four baserunners through the first two thirds of the game, and it looked like the team was headed to a dispiriting start to the home schedule.

For some reason, scoring runs against opposing starters isn’t the 2025 Phillies’ thing. But once the bullpen doors open, look out! Much like they did against the Nationals, the Phillies’ hitters unloaded on the Rockies’ relievers. Edmundo Sosa got a key two-out hit in the seventh, and that sparked a late offensive barrage. The result was a 6-1 win that (eventually) send the fans home happy.

The Phillies have yet to score a run in the first three innings of a game this season, and they seemed determined to attack Rockies starter German Marquez early in the count. But early swings didn’t result in many hits, and Marquez – a decent, but unspectacular veteran – largely breezed through his six innings.

The Phillies’ offensive issues overshadowed that Cristopher Sanchez looked excellent in his own right. He struck out seven batters in 5.1 innings, and the only damage was a solo home run by Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman in the sixth. Sanchez appeared to injure his foot in the fifth inning, but he was able to remain in the game.

Sanchez’s strong start looked like it would be for naught. In the bottom of the seventh, a leadoff single was erased by a double play, and it felt like another scoreless inning would soon be in the books. But Bryson Stott blooped a double, Trea Turner worked a pinch walk, bringing Edmundo Sosa to the plate.

We all love Sosa, and the rest of the Phillies lineup seems to love him too, since his clutch hit opened the floodgates. Immediately after that hit, Kyle Schwarber promptly expanded the lead.

And then in the eighth, Max Kepler and Nick Castellanos went back-to-back, to make the final score look a lot more lopsided than the game actually felt.

The Phillies will have an extra day to savor the win thanks to Tuesday’s scheduled off day. Hopefully, they can spend that time figuring out how to actually score some runs against a starting pitcher, and we’ll actually be able to celebrate some early inning runs in the days ahead.