Walker Buehler debut in Philly, Harper and Stott go yard, Phillies crush Royals 8-2

Walker Buehler finally put on a Phillies uniform Friday night, and for the first time in a long time, he actually looked like Walker Buehler.

Five innings, one run, five hits, one walk, three strikeouts. Not vintage Dodger Stadium Buehler, but good enough and really, good enough is all the Phillies really need right now.

Walker Buehler Phillies Debut: Good.

First Phillies start ✔️ pic.twitter.com/eXBvJQ2blZ

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) September 13, 2025

Bobby Witt Jr. gave him some trouble in the first with a single, stolen base, and a run scored, but from there Buehler settled in. The guy hasn’t won a game since August 8 with Boston, so yeah, we’ll take this one as a reset.

Bryce Harper swings the hammer

Kyle Schwarber walked to start the third, and then Bryce Harper went ahead and parked one in the left-field seats for his 26th homer of the year. Just like that, 2-1 Phillies and the floodgates opened.

Bryce set the tone@STIHLUSA x #RingTheBell pic.twitter.com/r23E6Sf0x2

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) September 13, 2025

Bryce Harper’s perfect response to Ken Rosenthal on his performance this season

Otto Kemp chipped in with an RBI single later in the inning after Brandon Marsh legged out a triple. Then Rafael Marchan, Harrison Bader, and Schwarber all doubled in a row in the fourth to blow it open. By the time Bryson Stott added a two-run blast in the seventh, the Royals were cooked.

TMac knew right away 😂 pic.twitter.com/7luFTBHfEn

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) September 13, 2025

The unsung hero

Shoutout to Rafael Marchan. Guy’s barely played all year and rolled into this game with a .178 average, and what does he do? Two hits, a sac fly, and a run scored. Not bad for the backup of the backup.

The bigger picture

The Phillies have now won five straight and sit firmly in the driver’s seat in the NL East. The magic number keeps shrinking, and even with injuries piling up, the machine keeps rolling.

Buehler’s not here to be Zack Wheeler. He’s here to eat some innings, steady the rotation, and maybe give the Phillies a weapon in October if the pitching lab can get him back to something resembling his peak.

Friday was step one, and it went about as well as anyone could’ve asked.

Up next for the Phillies

Taijuan Walker takes the ball Saturday against Ryan Bergert.

3️⃣ pic.twitter.com/K3xIm3sv6V

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) September 13, 2025

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