The story of the day was already written hours before the Phillies wrapped up their series against the Pirates. MLB announced an 80-game suspension for reliever José Alvarado, also making him postseason ineligible.
It was a devastating blow for the Phillies, one that only time will tell how disruptive it'll be for the club, but there was a sliver of positivity Sunday — a win.
The Phillies swept the 3-game series with a 1-0 win, improving to a season-best 10 games over .500 at 28-18.
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SIGN UP HERE The bulk of it was in part of Mick Abel, who received word a few days ago that Sunday would be his major-league debut.
An unexpected call brought the right-handed pitcher to Citizens Bank Park in front of a crowd of 44,356.
Abel pitched six shutout innings and tied Curt Simmons' franchise record for most strikeouts in a debut (9).
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There was lingering concern for Abel after his 2024 season with a 3-12 record and 6.46 ERA. His 5-2, 2.53 ERA turnaround in 2025 earned him the call to make this one start.
"There were times [last season] where I didn't think I would be [up with the Phillies], but there were other times where I would," Abel said after collecting his first win. "I think it's just going through the ups and downs and trying to understand how to go through those. Thankfully I was able to think about it in the offseason and understand 'Yeah, I'm still pretty good at baseball.'"
He'll head back to triple-A with a chip on his shoulder, leaving a lasting impression with the Phillies.
"I don't really know what I expected," he said. "I just wanted to go out there and give it my all. It was fun."
Outdoing one of MLB's top pitchers? Safe to say he accomplished what he set out to do.
On the other side of the coin, the Phillies faced Skenes for the first time.
The only run he allowed in eight innings of work came in the fifth. Nick Castellanos had an infield single and made his way to third when Max Kepler singled to right field.
Brandon Marsh then beat out what should have been an inning-ending double play. That hustle got the lone run of the day across home plate.
It was a game of inches. Unfortunately for Skenes, this is something he knows all too well this season. Through 10 starts, he sits at 3-5 even though he's only allowed 17 earned runs.
It feels ironic to say a game that came in just under the two hour mark (1:59) was a grind, but it was just that.
"After the sad news this morning, it feels really good and gratifying to get through that game," Rob Thomson said after the win. "See what Mick did, see what the bullpen did, they did a great job.
"We just squeaked a run across. … That's how you win a playoff game, like that. You're always going to face really good pitching."