Luzardo’s 10-strikeout gem after rugged start helps Phillies sweep Mets to extend NL East lead

PHILADELPHIA AP Jes s Luzardo had no idea he was perfect well at least over the final seven innings until he fanned Francisco Lindor in the eighth for his th strikeout of the challenge and th this season Luzardo made his situation to Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson to finish the competition but no dice Not with Jhoan Duran around to close it out Luzardo had to settle for retiring his final batters Thursday night in one of his majority of dominant performances this season one made even more astounding by the fact he gave up five hits and four runs in the first inning In his third start of the year with at least strikeouts and no walks Luzardo got run patronage from Otto Kemp and Bryce Harper in a - comeback win over the New York Mets Kemp homered and had three RBIs for the Phillies who swept the four-game series They have won eight of overall and are poised to secure their second straight division title The conquest pushed their NL East lead over New York to games with to play and they could clinch this weekend against Kansas City The whole competition really was ostensibly as impressive a win as we ve had all year Thomson disclosed Luzardo - hasn t lost since Aug and has steadied himself after a rough patch in the middle of the season He threw pitches in the first inning and only the rest of the event The left-hander did it all without realizing he hadn t permitted a baserunner over the final seven innings I knew it had been a while but I wasn t sure Luzardo stated In the eighth the first was already kind of a blur so I didn t really think too much of it Even with Philadelphia ace Zack Wheeler out for the season because of complications from a blood clot Luzardo Cristopher S nchez and Ranger Su rez are about as formidable a top of the rotation as any contender has in baseball Throw in playoff veteran Aaron Nola who returned to form with six shutout innings in the first championship of the series and it s no wonder the Phillies believe they can ultimately win it all after falling short each of the last three postseasons It s hard to lose one of if not the best pitchers in baseball Luzardo declared The only thing we can do is continue and kind of step up and do as well as we can I think everyone s done that The new guys sure help Luzardo who had battled various injuries throughout his career was acquired on the cheap in the offseason from the Marlins But just look at the makeover since the July pact deadline Harrison Bader has solidified center field since he was obtained from Minnesota and was on such a tear that Thomson moved him to the leadoff spot during this series once NL batting leader Trea Turner was sidelined with a hamstring injury Bader who played for the Mets last season is batting for against them this year and his go-ahead hit Thursday was his third already for Philadelphia in the sixth inning or later He brings a little swagger to the club Thomson disclosed Bader has become an instant fan favorite for a franchise with plenty of them The Phillies reached million in total attendance at Citizens Bank Park for the third consecutive season It s everything I ve really kind of worked for and petitioned for Bader stated There s a lot of passion in the stands a lot at stake and I really wouldn t have it any other way Duran also obtained from the Twins in a separate deal struck out all three batters in the ninth for his th save as the final Mets batters went down He has saves already with the Phillies and is yet to walk a batter while racking up strikeouts in innings He s blown only one save chance with Philadelphia The Phillies are - since the contract deadline the best winning percentage in baseball during that span We re better since the deadline Thomson mentioned I don t know how to quantify it But we re better Duran at the end he s a difference-maker The Phillies were swept by the rival Mets at Citi Field in a three-game series in late August that seemed to tighten the NL East race Instead the Phillies have gone on their usual late-season surge to stamp themselves the class of the division while the Mets went from fighting for first place to just fighting for a wild card New York dropped the last six games of a - road trip trimming its lead over Cincinnati and San Francisco to games for the final National League playoff berth Right now we re still in a playoff spot Jeff McNeil reported Could be worse Could be better Just ask the Phillies AP MLB https apnews com MLB Source