The Phillies' Bats Are Dead: Only 2 Runs Scored in the Last 37 Innings and Arizona Is Coming Sunday

Philadelphia's offense is in full crisis mode heading into Sunday's finale against Arizona. The Phillies have scored in just two of their last 37 innings. Think about that for a second. They came into this series against the Diamondbacks already riding a 20-inning scoreless drought, then managed to blank themselves in 15 of 17 frames against Arizona. This is bad.

A Glimmer of Hope on Saturday

The only thing keeping the Phillies from a complete meltdown is that they scraped out a 4-3 win on Saturday. Kyle Schwarber launched a three-run homer and Bryce Harper answered with one of his own, finally giving starter Taijuan Walker enough breathing room to get his first win of 2026. For Schwarber, it was his fourth bomb of the season and snapped a six-game drought. Harper's blast was his third of the year, also ending a six-game homerless stretch.

But here's the thing: Friday was a disaster. The Phillies exploded for four runs in the first inning, then got nothing the rest of the way and lost 5-4. That's the pattern that's killing them.

What Schwarber Knows

"Everyone wants to get a hit, everyone wants to make the sick play, everyone wants to do something," Schwarber said. "But that moment you start trying to go out and you start reaching for it might just create something that shouldn't be there."

He's right. And he's also got respect for Harper's approach. "He's doing what he does really well. He's staying within himself. He's controlling the zone, obviously. He's getting a lot of really good contact and that's what he does."

Arizona Brings Gallen and Some Momentum Hopes

The Diamondbacks got a leadoff homer from Ketel Marte on Saturday and three hits from Adrian Del Castillo, but two runs isn't going to cut it in a ballpark like Philadelphia's. Manager Torey Lovullo knows it. "Two runs in this ballpark against this team doesn't mean much, because they can turn things around in a hurry," he said.

Arizona will counter Sunday with Zac Gallen (1-1, 3.00 ERA), who's been sharp recently. He's allowed just one earned run over his last two starts and is 4-1 with a 2.52 ERA in seven career starts against the Phillies. The Phillies will throw rookie Andrew Painter (1-0, 4.82), who just turned 23 and has been all over the map in his first two starts. He gave up one run in 5 1/3 innings in his debut but got tagged for four runs on nine hits in just four innings against San Francisco on Monday.

First pitch Sunday tells the story of whether Philly's bats wake up or keep sleeping.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.