Bryce Harper stays red-hot as Phillies beat the Diamondbacks, 7-1, for sixth straight win

Lochlahn March, The Philadelphia Inquirer on Sep 2, 2026

Published in Baseball

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PHOENIX — After a blazing August, Bryce Harper stayed red-hot on the first day of September.

The Phillies right fielder posted a .333 batting average and 1.069 OPS last month, and kept things rolling on Tuesday with a 4-for-4 game against the Diamondbacks. Harper delivered four singles in the 7-1 win over Arizona, the Phillies’ sixth in a row.

He was one of six different Phillies to record an RBI in the game, as the offense supported another dazzling road performance from starter Jesús Luzardo. The lefty improved his road record to 9-0 with 6⅔ innings of one-run ball against Arizona.

Harper laid down a bunt single in the first inning, which both extended his on-base streak to 34 games and advanced Trea Turner to third base. Though Luis Arraez grounded into a double play in the next at-bat, Turner was still able to score to make it 2-0 before Luzardo even stepped on the mound.

Arizona scattered six hits against Luzardo, but finished 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position and stranded six runners. Their only run came in the fifth inning after Luzardo left a fastball over the plate for Jordan Lawlar. The Diamondbacks center fielder powered it over the left field wall, out of reach for a leaping Edmundo Sosa.

Luzardo made two key defensive plays to help his own cause, turning a comebacker from Ildemaro Vargas into a double play in the second inning and catching the lead runner after fielding Tim Tawa’s bunt in the seventh.

He struck out six, with five coming on his sweeper.

As Turner’s struggles at the plate stretched on in the last month, he hasn’t handled fastballs well. He hit .178 against fastballs in August, a steep drop off from his .295 batting average against that pitch in July. But Turner managed to do some damage with the third fastball he saw in September.

After taking the first four-seam from Diamondbacks starter Eduardo Rodriguez for a ball and fouling off the second pitch, Turner sent the third 415 feet. It bounced off the base of the center field wall, and though it would have been a homer in 24 other major league ballparks, Turner and the Phillies happily settled for an RBI double.

Also driving in a run apiece were Kyle Schwarber, Alec Bohm, Justin Crawford, and Bryson Stott. The Phillies offense had yet another late surge, putting up three runs in the eighth. Crawford entered the game as a pinch-hitter against righty Gerardo Carrillo and singled on the first pitch he saw to drive in Stott.

Jonathan Bowlan and Chase Shugart split the job in relief. With the victory, and thanks to the Cubs’ loss to Milwaukee a few hours earlier, the Phillies moved into sole possession of the top wild-card spot in the National League.