CHICAGO -- After being swept over the weekend in Los Angeles, the Phillies turned things around Monday night with a 10-2 win over the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.
The Phillies stunned the defending World Series champs with seven runs in the first two innings. All the runs were scored against Cubs' lefty starter Brett Anderson.
Vince Velasquez got the win but, as too often is the case, battled a high pitch count and lasted just five innings.
The Phillies out-hit the Cubs, 12-4. Half of the Phils' hits were for extra bases.
Starting pitching report
Velasquez gave up just two hits over five innings, a single and a solo homer.
The right-hander opened the game with three smooth innings and threw just 44 pitches over that span. But he needed 37 pitches to get through the fourth inning. He walked two batters and hit another in that inning, but did not allow a run as he struck out Wilson Contreras with the bases full to get out of the inning. Velasquez gave up a solo homer on an 0-2 pitch to Javier Baez the next inning. He finished that inning at 98 pitches and exited.
MLB
Velasquez has won two straight starts and is 2-2.
Anderson (2-1) did not make it out of the second inning. He was tagged for seven hits, including a homer, and seven runs. Anderson had allowed just eight earned runs in 20 1/3 innings over his first four starts this season.
Bullpen report
Edubray Ramos pitched two innings and gave up an unearned run. Joely Rodriguez pitched a scoreless eighth. Pat Neshek closed it out in a non-save situation.
At the plate
The Phillies, who entered the game ranked 12th in the National League with just 25 homers, hit three of them.
Tommy Joseph went 0 for 8 on the West Coast and entered the game hitting .179. He needed a big hit and delivered one -- a laser-beam three-run homer through the rain with two outs in the top of the first inning. Joseph also lined out hard to center in the fifth.
Aaron Altherr got the Phillies' scoring started with an RBI double in the first inning. Altherr also had a two-run double in the second inning. Eight of Altherr's 15 hits this season have been for extra bases.
Michael Saunders belted his second homer of the season, a liner into the right field seats with two outs in the seventh. Freddy Galvis added a two-run shot two batters later.
In the field
Altherr made a nice diving catch in left field with two men on base for the second out in the fourth inning.
Health check
Aaron Nola, on the disabled list with a lower back strain, was pleased with his bullpen session Monday (see story).
Up next
Jeremy Hellickson (4-0, 1.80) will pitch against Cubs lefty Jon Lester (0-1, 3.68) on Tuesday night.