The Philadelphia Phillies welcomed Walker Buehler for his debut on Friday night, and he helped the team secure an 8-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals at Citizens Bank Park.
The 31-year-old right-hander, whom the Boston Red Sox released on August 29, and signed with the Phillies two days later, pitched five innings of one-run baseball, giving up five hits, walking one, hitting a batter, and striking out three.
Buehler’s first inning saw a brief scare when Bobby Witt Jr. singled, stole second, and scored on a Maikel Garcia single, giving the Royals an early 1-0 lead. After that, Buehler settled in, inducing 11 swings and misses, tied for his second-highest total in any outing this season and his highest since June 17.
He threw 90 pitches, 63.3% of which were hard pitches, including a 93.8 mph four-seam fastball, while going to a 0-2 count four times and generating weak contact in his final frame. This was only the fifth time Buehler finished at least five innings while allowing one run or less this season.
The Phillies’ offense supported their newcomer emphatically. Bryce Harper hit an opposite-field two-run homer in the third inning, his 26th of the season, giving Philadelphia a lead they would not relinquish. Brandon Marsh followed with a triple and scored on an Otto Kemp single, while Rafael Marchan, Harrison Bader, and Kyle Schwarber hit consecutive doubles in the fourth to extend the lead to 6-1. Bryson Stott added a two-run homer in the seventh.
The team recorded 14 hits, their fourth straight game with double-digit hits, and had contributions from six multihit players, including Bader, who notched his fifth consecutive multihit game, a new career high.
The bullpen, featuring Tanner Banks, Tim Mayza, Orion Kerkering, and Max Lazar, efficiently closed out the final four innings, allowing only one additional run. While Edmundo Sosa experienced a minor setback by exiting in the seventh due to groin tightness, manager Rob Thomson praised Buehler’s debut as a valuable addition, noting it provides extra rest for the Phillies’ rotation and another potential option for the postseason.
The Phillies improved to 88-60, increasing their lead in the NL East to 12 games and lowering their magic number to clinch the division to three.
