Cold Bats & Missed Chances: Phillies drop series finale 7-0 in St. Louis

Drew Smith
April 14, 2025
Phillies
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Well, that’s not how you want to head into a homestand. The Phillies closed out their six-game road trip with a whimper, falling 7-0 to the Cardinals on Sunday afternoon.

They finish the trip 2-4 after dropping both series to Atlanta and St. Louis — not ideal, especially with how stagnant the offense has looked.

Brutal Ending to the Road Trip…

FINAL: Cardinals 7, Phillies 0
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) April 13, 2025

Zack Wheeler was human, and while he wasn’t shelled, he wasn’t sharp either. Four runs over six innings on seven hits, just three strikeouts, and one walk. That would’ve been good enough to compete — if they brought any offense. They didn’t.

Matthew Liberatore baffled the lineup, going six shutout innings with seven strikeouts and just three hits allowed. And unlike Friday’s 2-0 loss, the Phils didn’t even really threaten. They had second and third with one out in the second inning and couldn’t cash in. That was basically it.

Meanwhile, the Cardinals strung together big hits off Wheeler in the middle innings. Willson Contreras broke it open with a two-run bomb, his first of the season. Brendan Donovan and Nolan Arenado followed with doubles in the sixth, and Jordan Walker put it out of reach with a two-run shot off the bullpen in the seventh.

St. Louis wins the series — their first over the Phillies since 2017 — and deals the Phils their second shutout of the series. But no, this was not back-to-back shutouts. The Phillies did score four runs Saturday behind Cristopher Sánchez’s gem. Still, just four runs total in the series is brutal.

Gloves Up, Cards Down: Phils flash leather in 4-1 win behind Cristopher Sánchez

Brandon Marsh remains stuck in quicksand. He went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts Sunday and is now hitless in his last 26 at-bats. His average sits at .108, and it’s getting harder to justify rolling him out daily. Rob Thomson even acknowledged that a benching might be on the table soon.

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Up next: The Phillies return home for a seven-game stretch, starting Monday night against the Giants. Taijuan Walker gets the ball in the opener as the team tries to hit reset.