Trea Turner hits leadoff home run, Orion Kerkering gets first save as Phillies beat Marlins

The Phillies were rolling in their most recent homestand, and Trea Turner kept the momentum going right away as the club headed to South Florida.

The shortstop and leadoff hitter took the first pitch of the game from Marlins starter Sandy Alcántara, then punished a second-pitch sinker for a leadoff home run to center field, starting off a 5-2 win for Philadelphia on Monday night at loanDepot Park.

Turner went 3-for-5 with the homer and two RBIs before right-hander Orion Kerkering closed it out for his first career save as the Phillies (43-29) secured their fifth straight victory and took the opener of a four-game series in Miami.

Rookie Mick Abel took the mound for the Phillies in his fourth career start and allowed one run in five innings. The Marlins scored against the right-hander on an RBI single by Connor Norby in the bottom of the second.

Alcántara surrendered two runs on two solo homers in five innings for Miami. After Turner’s shot in the first, Max Kepler hit a go-ahead home run to right field in the fourth. Turner later extended Philadelphia’s lead to 3-1 with an RBI single off reliever Valente Bellozo in the seventh.

After pulling Abel, the Phillies handed the ball to Taijuan Walker, who is working on his transition to the bullpen, and he threw a quick nine-pitch top of the sixth. Jordan Romano then provided a scoreless seventh.

Left-hander Matt Strahm allowed a run on a sacrifice fly in the eighth, but the Phillies responded with two insurance runs in the top of the ninth on an Alec Bohm base hit to left.

Kerkering took down the ninth for the Phillies, protecting a three-run advantage and recording the milestone save.