Jesus Luzardo Dazzles on Mound Against Former Teammate on Red Sox

For the second series in a row, the Philadelphia Phillies were heading into a rubber game with the opportunity to come away victorious in a three-game set.

The team was relying on Jesus Luzardo to help bring them to victory. He was looking to bounce back from a poor start against the Colorado Rockies his last time out, when he surrendered six earned runs in three innings of work in a 9-7 loss.

There was a little extra incentive during this start. Not only was he looking to get the Phillies to win their fifth series in a row, but he was being opposed by a former teammate. Ranger Suarez was on the mound for the Boston Red Sox, looking to help his own struggling team.

Both players stepped up in the fashion each of their respective teams would have hoped for, twirling gems.

Jesus Luzardo and Ranger Suarez had old-fashioned pitcher's duel

Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Ranger Suarez (55) pitches against the Philadelphia Phillies. — May 14, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Ranger Suarez (55) pitches against the Philadelphia Phillies during the first inning at Fenway Park. | Eric Canha-Imagn Images

Luzardo was excellent, throwing six shutout innings. He allowed only four hits and one walk while striking out four. He threw 92 pitches in the outing, 59 of which were for strikes.

After retiring the first six Red Sox batters of the game, Luzardo did face some adversity. There were a few hairy moments, with Boston getting a runner into scoring position in four straight innings. But he buckled down and didn’t allow any of them to come across the plate.

The talented lefty didn’t end up factoring into the decision because his former teammate was just as great. Suarez pitched 5.1 innings, allowing only four hits and one walk. He was mowing down his former teammates, striking out eight.

He was lifted after only 76 pitches, which Philadelphia batters had to be thrilled about. This is a lineup that has been pitiful against left-handed pitching all season, and that troubling trend continued against Suarez.

Their first base runner didn’t come until the fourth inning when Bryce Harper drew a walk. The Phillies threatened in the fifth inning, hitting three singles, but it wasn’t enough to scratch across a run, with Edmundo Sosa and Trea Turner both striking out with the bases loaded.

6.0 scoreless frames from Zeus ⚡ pic.twitter.com/MtgCMqRoYr
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) May 15, 2026

Singles were all that Suarez allowed, taking full advantage of a Philadelphia lineup that cannot hit southpaws.

However, they did get the job done against a left-handed reliever to pull out the victory. In the eighth inning against Tyler Samaniego, Kyle Schwarber launched his 18th home run of the season, a two-run shot, to give the Phillies a 2-0 lead.

Second baseman Bryson Stott would add an insurance run off Zach Kelly. After Trevor Story committed an error on Alec Bohm, Brandon Marsh singled, J.T. Realmuto was hit by a pitch and Stotto knocked in a run with a single.

Boston would score a run in the bottom of the inning courtesy of a Wilyer Abreu RBI single, but it wasn’t enough to catch Philadelphia, who is now 12-4 since Don Mattingly took over as interim manager for Rob Thomson.

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