Phillies Jesus Luzardo rebounds in the wake of Rob Thomson firing

Phillies Jesus Luzardo rebounds in the wake of Rob Thomson firing originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

After the Philadelphia Phillies decided to let go of manager Rob Thomson on Tuesday, the Phillies blanked the San Francisco Giants (7-0) to give interim manager Don Mattingly his first win.

Mattingly, 65, was hired as the Phillies' bench coach in the offseason and told reporters a simple message, “It’s all coming back to what?” Mattingly said to MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki. “Better baseball.”

The Phillies did just that, having a clean game with no errors or mistakes in the field. The Phillies also received a masterful pitching performance from left-hander Jesus Luzardo, who had struggled until facing the Giants.

Jesus Luzardo becomes the first Philadelphia Phillie to throw seven innings this season

Until Tuesday night, no Phillies starter had completed the seventh inning until Luzardo. The 28-year-old allowed two hits, no runs, walked none, and struck out eight across seven masterful innings. Luzardo lowered his season ERA from 6.92 to 5.50 after this start.

Luzardo had his first quality start since April 4 against the Colorado Rockies, where he struck out 11 in 6.2 innings. According to Luzardo, right-hander Zack Wheeler approached him about the stat and said “We [the pitching staff] gotta pick it up.”