PHILADELPHIA — Lefthander Jesús Luzardo, whom the Phillies acquired from Miami just before Christmas, was the gift that kept on giving during the first two months of the season.
He was on a Cy Young pace, boasting a 2.15 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, and 77 strikeouts compared to 19 walks in 67 innings. The 27-year-old had arrived here with somewhat of an injury history, including Tommy John surgery, a forearm strain and a lower back issue. But his stuff was always electric, and he was showcasing it with the Phillies.
And then everything blew up.
Physically he was fine, but in his last two starts, Luzardo was shelled for a combined 20 earned runs in just 5⅔ frames against the Milwaukee Brewers and Toronto Blue Jays. He wasn’t commanding his pitches or establishing the inside of the plate. He was a whole different Jesús, unrecognizable.
But amid a 7-2, rubber-match win against the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday, Luzardo re-emerged as his dynamic self. He scattered five hits and a run over six innings while striking out 10 and not walking anybody.
It was the 11th double-digit strikeout game of his career, his fourth this season, and his first since May 25 against the Athletics.
“Just getting back on track is huge, a sense of relief and understanding that the stuff’s still there,” Luzardo said. “I feel great physically. And the adjustments that we needed to make — whether it’s pitch selection, more conviction behind certain pitches, being more fine as to where we’re going — the adjustments that we made obviously worked, so we’re happy about that.”
In addition to some command issues in his previous two outings, something else was out of whack and extremely wrong: Luzardo was tipping his pitches.
He and the Phillies coaching staff did a “deep dive” to correct the problem, though manager Rob Thomson downplayed it.
“I think it’s more about execution than anything else,” Thomson said after Wednesday’s victory. “(The ball) wasn’t leaking back over the plate (on inside pitches), and that’s really the key. … He really executed today, down to the strike zone, changeup, slider, both really good. Got a lot of weak contact, a lot of swing and miss, obviously, with 10 punchouts and no walks.
“He has great stuff. Everybody can have a bad start, or two bad starts in a row, but his stuff is great. … And he’s a student of the game. He’s always studying and looking at film.”
Phillies president Dave Dombrowski and the front office traded a pair of minor leaguers – shortstop Starlyn Caba and outfielder Emaarion Boyd – to get Luzardo. Caba played 26 games for Single-A Clearwater last year, and Boyd played with High-A Jersey Shore.
The Phils also received minor league catcher Paul McIntosh in the deal.
“He’s a really nice guy off the field, but when he gets on that hill, he’s a bear. He really is,” Kyle Schwarber said of Luzardo. “And I think (his previous two starts) bothered him a lot, so I’m happy for him.”
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Phillies shortstop Trea Turner, over his previous 47 games, was slashing .327/.372/.487 with an .860 OPS, including 18 extra-base hits (10 doubles, two triples and six home runs). He went 2-for-3 with a double, walk and a run on Wednesday, raising his overall season slash line to .303/.360/.446 with an .807 OPS, seven homers, 30 RBIs and 19 stolen bases.
Also, he came in with a .978 fielding percentage, which is his best since his career-high of .980 in 2018. He has just one error in his last 39 games.
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In an effort to get long-relief help, the Phillies recalled righthander Michael Mercado from Triple-A СŷƵ and designated righty Carlos Hernández for assignment. The 26-year-old Mercado has gone 2-0 with a pair of saves, a 5.31 ERA (12 ER, 20⅓ IP), 22 strikeouts and eight walks in 17 relief appearances with the IronPigs this season.
Mercado pitched a scoreless ninth against the Cubs on Wednesday, walking one but not allowing a hit.
He had posted a 2.08 ERA (3 ER, 13 IP) across his last eight outings since May 11, and he had allowed one or zero earned runs in 14 of his appearances this season. Mercado made his major league debut with the Phillies last year and earned the win in his first career start on July 2 at Wrigley Field. Overall, he appeared in five games over two stints with the club in 2024.
Hernández, 28, was claimed off waivers from the Kansas City Royals on March 23 and went 1-0 with a 5.26 ERA (15 ER, 25.2 IP) in 25 relief appearances for the Phillies this season. The Guayana, Venezuela, native was originally signed by the Royals as an amateur free agent on July 19, 2016.
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NOTES >> Every Phillies batter had at least one hit except Johan Rojas, who was 0-for-4 with a strikeout. Rojas (.230/.282/.310) also made an error in center field. … The Phils have won six straight series against the Cubs, who are in first place in the NL Central, including two series this season.
