Vince Velasquez solid as Phillies win in his return to rotation

MIAMI — The sixth inning arrived, with Vince Velasquez having thrown 70 pitches Tuesday from the Marlins Park mound. It was this mound where, 49 days earlier, he succumbed to a sore elbow. Now Dee Gordon, Giancarlo Stanto,n and Christian Yelich loomed in a tie game. It was the first test in what figures to be an important 10 weeks in the young righthander's career.

These are the challenges he must master if he is to continue his current trajectory as a starter. He flourished in a 5-2 Phillies win Tuesday night.  Velasquez threw nine pitches in the sixth inning to record three tough outs. He completed six solid innings in his first start since May 30.

"Having the injury here, it's kind of tough mentally," Velasquez said. "But you have to lock in and have that right mind-set and attack hitters."

The Phillies were encouraged by their 25-year-old pitcher. They won because their 24-year-old third baseman clubbed a slider over the left-field wall. They breathed easier because their 23-year-old rookie outfielder hit a most impressive opposite-field homer.

It was a good night for the young Phillies.

Maikel Franco homered in the eighth inning to push them ahead. Nick Williams collected his second home run against a lefthanded pitcher on this road trip to provide two insurance runs in the ninth. Before all of that, rookie Cameron Perkins delivered a two-out single and safety squeeze to produce two Phillies runs.

And, for six innings, Velasquez kept them in it. He had not pitched since late May because of a strained right elbow. The Phillies did not have to bring him back to the majors as a starter, but they are afforded time to learn more about what Velasquez can and cannot handle.

As with any Velasquez start, there was bad with the good. He attempted to sneak an inside fastball past Stanton with a 2-1 count in the first inning. Stanton did not miss it. He swatted his third homer in two nights.

Then, in the third, Velasquez fielded a swinging bunt by J.T. Riddle. Velasquez should have just kept it in his glove. Instead, he flung it toward first base. The throw was not close. It rolled up the right-field line, in foul territory, and became a two-base error. The next pitch, a low fastball, glanced off Cameron Rupp's glove and skipped away. The passed ball scored the unearned run.

"That's part of the game," Velasquez said. "The whole point is, who's next? That's the guy you have to get out. You have to move on from it. Step off the rubber, then control the game."

"He regrouped and didn't lose his composure," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "He settled down."

Velasquez attacked the strike zone and pitched with an atypical efficiency. He threw 79 pitches, 51 for strikes, in his six innings. He did not throw more than 17 pitches in an inning. He walked just one Marlins batter. He struck out four. His fastball appeared healthy; it averaged 94 mph. Of his 79 pitches, 55 were fastballs.

That formula may not breed long-term success as a starter, but it was good enough against the Marlins.

"He's a fighter," Williams said of Velasquez. "He goes right after you. He doesn't care who you are. I like that. I like to see pitchers go right after guys. It's fun to watch. It's fun to be a part of."

Pat Neshek, whose days with the Phillies are nearing an end, pitched another scoreless inning to lower his ERA to 1.17. With Chicago White Sox closer David Robertson reportedly headed to the Yankees, it will be interesting to see if Boston — in need of a bullpen reinforcement — turns to Neshek. The Red Sox have scouted this week's series between the Phillies and Marlins. Neshek could also fit with two surprising contenders, Milwaukee and Minnesota, too.

Velasquez's next start will come Monday, at Citizens Bank Park, against the team that drafted him. The Houston Astros happen to be the best team in the American League. It will be another test for Velasquez, and he will carry some confidence into it.