Coming into today, the Phillies were looking at a season opening sweep against the prohibitive favorite in the NL East. Staring down the barrel of a gauntlet of a schedule, getting off to a hot start would have been ideal. It doesn’t get hotter than sweeping the first three games, which is what the Phillies did on Sunday by downing the Braves, 2-1.
Another pitching duel shaped up between the two teams, this time the young starters Zach Eflin and Ian Anderson took center stage. The Phillies tried to get on the board early by getting a walk from Bryce Harper and a single from Alec Bohm with two outs in the first, but Didi Gregorius struck out, ending an early threat.