The Phillies’ bullpen could not hold a late lead in the Miami Marlins’ 7-5 comeback win at Citizens Bank Park on Easter Sunday. A second-year utility player, Javier Sanoja, was responsible for 5 RBIs and allowed Miami to avoid a series sweep in Philly.
Despite a strong performance from Phillies starter Jesus Luzardo, the Marlins scored five runs against the bullpen to put a damper on the Phanatic’s birthday celebrations in front of 45,000 of his closest friends.
Happy Birthday, Phillie Phanatic
Fans on South Broad enjoyed a party atmosphere and parade of local mascots, including the Super Bowl LIX champion Swoop, before Rob Thompson handed the ball to a man with a nickname any mascot would be proud of.
Jesus Luzardo, known as “Zeus”, pitched with extraordinary abilities on Sunday. He allowed one run and scattered eight hits while shutting down Miami over seven innings. There was some concern in that seventh inning where Luzardo went to toss a pitch, landed awkwardly, and was checked on by the medical staff. “He just stubbed his toe,” manager Rob Thompson said. “He landed in the wrong spot. But it scared me, I can tell you that.” Unfortunately for his manager, the 27-year-old lefty did not factor in the final decision.
The Phillies struck first with three runs in the bottom of the first inning. Bryce Harper smacked a two-run double to right-centerfield for a 2-0 lead, followed by a Nick Castellanos single to right to score Harper for a 3-0 home lead. Miami plated a run in the top of the second inning, the only earned run charged to Luzardo on the day, as the Marlins sliced the lead to 3-1.
The Phillies put pressure on Marlins starter Connor Gillispie in the fourth inning. An Alec Bohm double was followed by a Johan Rojas single that put runners at second and third with no outs. The second-year MLB pitcher spiked a ball into the ground, and Bohm scored as the ball rolled towards the brick backstop for a 4-1 Phillies advantage.
In the seventh inning, Miami’s Sanoja singled to left field to start a small rally against Luzardo. Designated Hitter Matt Mervis smashed a line drive that blazed past Harper at first base and into right field, which advanced both runners into scoring position. Bryson Stott misplayed a groundball to second base, allowing Sanoja to score to cut the lead to 4-2 before Luzardo recorded his seventh and final strikeout of the day to end the threat.
Rob Thompson turned to Orion Kerkering in the eighth inning, but the pitching change didn’t have the intended shutdown results. Instead, the 24-year-old pitcher allowed three runs on three hits. All those runs scored on a towering Sanoja 3-run homerun, his first MLB round-tripper, which provided a 5-4 lead for the road squad. “A couple of sliders he left up in the zone,” Thompson said of Kerkering’s performance. “One to Norby, and one to Sanoja. That was it.”
Hope was not lost as the Phillies tied the game in the bottom of the eighth. Castellanos earned a walk before an inside pitch drilled Kepler to put runners on first and second. Cal Stevenson, who was recalled in the morning from Lehigh Valley, pinch-hit and delivered in the clutch with an RBI single to tie the game, 5-5.
Miami executed in extra innings with smart baseball and timely hitting against Matt Strahm. A sacrifice fly scored the go-ahead run before a single added some insurance runs on the scoreboard at 7-5. The Marlins turned to Jesus Tinoco to close the game, and the reliever secured the road win for Miami. “This one’s gone,” Thompson said postgame. “We can’t control what we did today. We just have to move forward and control what we can control.”
Next up for Philadelphia is a primetime series that should capture the attention of many around baseball. The Phillies and the Mets engage in a hardball battle for an early week series starting Monday night at Citi Field. New York is 9-1 at home this season and currently leads the NL East with a 15-7 record. Philly enters with a 13-9 record after the 7-5 defeat to Miami.
Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images
