Kyle Schwarber extended his on-base streak to 46 games with a pair of home runs and Zack Wheeler worked seven dominant innings as the visiting Philadelphia Phillies beat the Cleveland Guardians 3-0 on Sunday night.
Schwarber hit a solo homer in the first and a two-run blast in the eighth, moving into a tie with the New York Yankees’ Aaron Judge for the major league lead with 14 home runs. His on-base streak is the fourth-longest in Phillies history, 10 behind Mike Schmidt’s 56-game run in 1981-82.
A native of Middletown, Ohio, Schwarber was booed each time he batted as a consequence of his heroics in the 2016 World Series, when his Chicago Cubs beat the Cleveland Indians in seven games.
Wheeler (4-1) gave up three hits, walked a pair and struck out eight in beating the Guardians for the first time in three career starts. The right-hander is 3-0 in his last five outings, and the Phillies have won 11 of 14.
Cleveland managed just three total hits against Wheeler, Jose Alvardo and closer Jordan Romano, who picked up his third save. The Guardians had four hits Saturday in a game started by Ranger Suarez of the Phillies.
Guardians right-hander Luis Ortiz (2-4) pitched six innings, giving up the first Schwarber homer and four total hits with nine strikeouts. He fell to 2-1 with a sparkling 0.95 ERA in four career appearances against Philadelphia.
Schwarber’s second homer came off Tim Herrin, who walked Bryson Stott upon entering the game in the eighth.
The teams split their first two games of the series. Cleveland won the opener 6-0 on a combined six-hitter started by Gavin Williams, and Philadelphia followed with a 7-1 victory fueled by Bryce Harper’s two-run homer and season-high three hits.
–Field Level Media
