Castellanos comes up huge once again as Phillies sweep NL Central-leading Brewers

Castellanos comes up huge once again as Phillies sweep NL Central-leading Brewers originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The weather is heating up and so is Nick Castellanos.

After a walk-off double to give the Phillies the win Tuesday night, Nick Castellanos came up huge once again in the series finale against the Brewers.

A two-run home run in the bottom of the fifth inning was Castellanos’ fifth hit of the month. It was also the only offense needed to get the job done on Wednesday afternoon.

The Phillies wrapped up the three-game series against the Brewers with a 2-0 win, sweeping the NL Central leaders.

This marks the eighth series sweep for the Phillies and the first time the Brewers have been swept this season.

Sitting at 44-19, the Phillies have reached 25 games over .500 for just the 18th time in franchise history.

That should quiet down the “Phillies have an easy schedule, that’s why their record is good” crowd a few notches. Maybe more.

The Phillies got another gem from their starting pitching, with Aaron Nola going seven scoreless. He allowed just two hits, no runs, no walks and punched out five. His ERA has now dropped to 2.77.

Nola earned his eighth win of the season and 98th of his career. He has tied Al Orth for the ninth most wins in Phillies franchise history.

While Nola was sharp, the Phillies’ defense has been spectacular through the six-game homestand.

In the third inning, Gary Sanchez lined out to Bryson Stott, who made yet another highlight-worthy leaping catch.

Cristian Pache, who started in center for Johan Rojas, made a diving catch to end the fourth inning.

And Alec Bohm, who has been electric in the infield since his two-error game against the Rockies just over a week ago, threw William Contreras out at home on a fielder’s choice to keep the Brewers off the board.

They wrap up the homestand 5-1. With a Braves loss earlier today against the Red Sox, the Phillies are now eight games up in the NL East.

The Phillies will have the rare two consecutive days off ahead of their London Series against the Mets. As of now, all signs point to Ranger Suarez (9-1, 1.70 ERA) making his scheduled start on Saturday. He’ll go up against Sean Manaea (3-2, 3.63 ERA).

On Sunday, it will be Taijuan Walker (3-1, 5.73 ERA) for the Phils and Jose Quintana (1-5, 5.17 ERA) for the Mets.

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