Weston Wilson drove in the go-ahead run with an infield single along the third-base line, helping the Philadelphia Phillies defeat the Tampa Bay Rays 3-2 on Wednesday night and complete a three-game sweep.
Nick Castellanos hit a home run, and Zack Wheeler struck out nine batters in six innings as the Phillies lowered their magic number to clinch their first National League East title since 2011 to nine.
Wilson’s hit came with two outs in the sixth inning and traveled just 70 feet down the line. It was perfectly placed, allowing Castellanos to score from third base. This was the third consecutive game where a Philadelphia bench player provided the decisive hit.
The Rays immediately asked home plate umpire John Bacon if the ball had hit Wilson on the way down the line, but Bacon confirmed it did not.
“It moved a lot more than I thought it was going to and it just got in on me,” Wilson said. “I think they were trying to say that it hit me, but I did not feel a thing. So, that was kind of news to me. Even going back and looking at the video, it didn’t look like it hit me.”
Wilson was added to the lineup at the last minute for Philadelphia, replacing Kyle Schwarber, who was scratched after feeling discomfort in his left elbow during batting practice.
Schwarber was pulled from the game on Tuesday after hyperextending his elbow while diving into first base on a pickoff attempt, but he was still expected to play until a little over two hours before the game.
In the first two games of the series, Clemens and Cal Stevenson contributed, and Wilson continued the trend.
Buddy Kennedy, who had a crucial walk to set up Clemens’ game-winning hit on Monday and an RBI hit while replacing Schwarber on Tuesday, and Aramis Garcia, who made three key defensive plays in place of injured catcher J.T. Realmuto on Wednesday, are among the Phillies’ players who have made significant contributions despite spending most of the year at Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
“I think it’s a testament to how we take care of business down there,” Wilson said. “(The Phillies) putting trust in guys to come up in big situations has helped guys flourish in those opportunities.”
