Braves beat Phillies again, but Tyler Phillips has a solid debut in relief

ATLANTA — Shortly before Sunday’s game, Tyler Phillips walked past a group of Phillies fans pressed up against the netting along the third base line. Not long ago, he was one of those fans, eager to catch a glimpse of major league players in person.

Now, he was one of those players. It was surreal, but this whole thing has been surreal. After spending parts of eight seasons in the minor leagues, he is on a big league roster with the team he grew up watching.

Phillips is from Lumberton, N.J. He played alongside Zac Gallen at Bishop Eustace Prep and spent his childhood going to games at Veterans Stadium and Citizens Bank Park. And on Sunday, in the Phillies’ 6-0 loss to the Atlanta Braves, he made his big league debut.

It went as well as he could have hoped. Phillips struck out the side in the fifth inning. He allowed a two-out solo home run to Eli White in the sixth, but bounced back immediately with a strikeout of Jarred Kelenic. He allowed one hit in the seventh and one in the eighth.

He finished his day pitching four innings, allowing one earned run on three hits with seven strikeouts and no walks, against one of the toughest lineups in the league.

This came on a day when the Phillies needed it. Starter Michael Mercado entered Sunday’s game with two big league games under his belt. Those first two went well; the third did not. The 25-year-old rookie was stretched out to 90 pitches but threw only 57 against the Braves. He pitched 1 2/3 innings.

Mercado has struggled with his control through his minor league career, and he struggled with it again on Sunday. He walked three batters to load the bases in the first inning. He narrowly escaped damage in the first but was not as fortunate in the second inning.

Mercado allowed a solo home run to Adam Duvall, a three-run home run to Kelenic, and a solo home run to Matt Olson to give the Braves an early 5-0 lead. He recorded only one strikeout.

The Phillies put up another lackluster offensive day as the Braves posted their second straight win. They were shut out and recorded only five hits. They went 0 for 7 with runners in scoring position.

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