Bryce Harper sent his former team packing last night with a 10th-inning walk-off for the Phillies. But before we can get to the end, we have to start with the beginning.
Poor weather continued to plague the Delaware Valley as another battle with rain took place at Citizens Bank Park. Saturday’s game started with a 25-minute rain delay.
Cristopher Sánchez started the game by allowing one run off of back-to-back-to-back hits from CJ Abrams, Ildemaro Vargas, and Joey Meneses With no outs and two runners on, it looked bleak. Sánchez went on to get Nick Senzel to ground into a double play and strike out Riley Adams to end the inning without allowing any further damage. He pitched seven full innings, allowing only one other run and striking out eight total batters.
Matt Strahm came in to relieve Sánchez in the eighth inning and continued his scoreless inning streak. He has not allowed a run since Marsh 31st. Orion Kerkering relieved Strahm in the ninth inning and allowed a run to score, upping his ERA to 1.98. Gregory Soto, eventually rewarded with the win, shut down the 10th inning and allowed the offense an opportunity to walk it off. The Phillies’ pitching, as they have been all year, did their job and afforded the offense time to mount a comeback.
Phillies Fight Back
Kyle Schwarber started the first inning for the Phils with a walk. JT Realmuto then grounded out, followed by weak grounders from Bryce Harper and Alec Bohm, ending the inning. The offense was at a standstill until Bryson Stott tied the game with a solo home run to right field in the seventh inning. The offense had chances in the eighth to avoid needing a walk-off but could not take advantage.
Down 2-3 with two outs, Kody Clemens was up to bat as the last hope. He delivered in a big way and tied the game up. In the 10th inning, Johan Rojas went to second as the ghost runner. The Nationals intentionally walked Kyle Schwarber to start the inning off. JT Realmuto got Rojas over to second with a flyout to centerfield and who else but Bryce Harper up to bat with the game on the line? All the Phillies needed was a sacrifice fly to win it. On a 1-2 count, Harper was served a 90 MPH splitter in the bottom of the zone and hit it to center field, scoring Rojas from third.
Noteworthy Events
Bryson Stott’s game-tying home run in the seventh inning matches his career-best 17-game on-base streak. He is batting .400 this month.
JT Realmuto extended his hit streak to 10 games with an infield single to shortstop CJ Abrams. It was a bad throw but Realmuto was still rewarded with the hit.
As a team, the Phillies have not lost a series since April 3rd when they played the Cincinnati Reds. They are playing at a .702 winning percentage for the season. A remarkable beginning to their 2024 run.
It was another sellout at Citizens Bank Park tonight, with an announced attendance of 43,112. The fans have been showing up to support the Phillies all season and tonight wasn’t any different. They will be looking for another sweep Sunday at 1:35.
Photo Credit: (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
