Fresh off gem for Phillies, ex-Marlin Jesus Luzardo takes hill

Jesus Luzardo will be hoping to build on his last start when the left-hander takes the mound for the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday against the host Miami Marlins.

That outing Tuesday was not only notable for Luzardo's performance but also for its timing.

It was the day the Phillies fired manager Rob Thomson and replaced him on an interim basis with Don Mattingly, who had been the team's bench coach.

Luzardo (2-3, 5.50 ERA) ushered in the new regime by allowing only two hits without a walk and striking out eight over seven innings in a 7-0 win over the visiting San Francisco Giants.

It not only was Mattingly's Phillies managerial debut but also the first time this season that a Philadelphia starter had gone seven innings.

"News to us, we found out about 30 minutes ago," Luzardo said after the game about authoring the team's first seven-inning start in 2026. "We're looking forward to doing it a lot more."

Many looked at it as being a potential watershed moment for the Phillies, who began the season 9-19 under Thomson.

"I don't know about reset, but maybe galvanize the team," said Luzardo, who was with the Marlins from 2021-24.

Luzardo has 41 strikeouts in 34 1/3 innings as he prepares to face his former team for the first time in the third game of a four-game series.

Philadelphia had won four straight under Mattingly before Saturday's 4-0 loss as three Miami pitchers limited the visitors to one hit. Philadelphia sent only 28 batters to the plate, one over the minimum.

Sunday's Miami starter, right-hander Chris Paddack (0-4, 6.11), takes the hill following a stellar outing by teammate Max Meyer on Saturday.

Meyer gave up one hit with a walk and seven strikeouts in seven innings in the longest outing of his career. The right-hander threw 83 pitches, 55 for strikes.

Meyer struck out Kyle Schwarber in all three at-bats after Schwarber struck out in all five at-bats in the series opener on Friday, a 6-5 Philadelphia win. The eight consecutive strikeouts tie Schwarber's career high.

Miami relievers Anthony Bender and Andrew Nardi retired the side in order in the eighth and ninth, respectively, to complete the one-hitter.

The win tied the series, which ends Monday, at one game each.

Paddack received a no-decision Monday against the host Los Angeles Dodgers, a 5-4 Miami loss. Paddack allowed two runs on four hits in four innings with a walk and a strikeout, throwing 67 pitches.

Paddack has faced Philadelphia three times, all when he was on the San Diego Padres. All three were starts, two in 2019 and one in 2021. Paddack is 0-2 with a 6.75 ERA, allowing 12 earned runs and 21 hits in 16 innings with two walks and 15 strikeouts.

Phillies center fielder Justin Crawford was a late scratch Saturday because of a migraine.

Before Saturday's game, Miami optioned left-hander Cade Gibson to Triple-A Jacksonville and selected the contract of right-hander Josh Ekness from Jacksonville. Per MLB Pipeline, Ekness is the Marlins' No. 30 prospect.

--Field Level Media