Marginal victory but great win for the Phillies, who tie the series against the Braves Originally appeared in NBC Sports Philadelphia
ATLANTA — It wasn’t pretty… but boy, was it necessary.
The Phillies narrowly pulled out a 3-2 victory Wednesday night at Truist Park to even the series against the Braves.
More importantly, the Phillies gave themselves some wiggle room in the NL East, as the gap between the two teams narrowed to seven games. The two teams will meet four more times in the span of 11 days, and marginal wins like this one could very well decide the division.
So, it may not have been their flashiest win of the season… but it was a big win for a team that played nine innings against a good, if severely depleted, Braves team.
A victory that left manager Rob Thomson with this key statement in his office moments later: “This is how you win a playoff game.”
There’s always a lot of talk about Aaron Nola, but one thing is certain: he’s a workhorse. And, win or lose, he can never be appreciated enough.
Even on a night when he wasn’t at his best (though he did at least manage a B+), Nola pitched 5.1 innings, allowing two runs on eight hits. Those two runs were scored on a home run by Orlando Arcia, the 23rd Nola has allowed this season.
Even more surprising was his strikeout-to-walk ratio. In his last two starts at this ballpark, Nola had a combined 16 strikeouts and zero walks. Tonight, he struck out five and walked two. Still, he did what was needed of him to keep the Phillies in the series. As a result, they are now just one game behind the Braves in the season series (4-3).
“I think every win is important right now,” Nola said. “I feel like no lead is big enough right now, especially with (the Braves). They’re always good, they always play us really well and it’s always a challenge when we play the Braves.
“We have to take care of business tomorrow and try to win a series.”
Nola has gotten out of an inning in order just once, striking out all three batters in the fifth. Nola has pitched 159.1 innings this season, which puts him ahead of teammate Zack Wheeler for second in the NL, behind only San Francisco’s Logan Webb (172.2).
It took until the sixth inning for the Phillies to break through and get to left-hander Max Fried.
Edmundo Sosa singled, Johan Rojas doubled, and suddenly the Phillies had runners in scoring position for the first time. Kyle Schwarber grounded out to bring home Sosa, and Rojas scored on Trea Turner’s sacrifice fly.
Brandon Marsh, who came in as a pinch hitter for Rojas in the eighth inning, sent left fielder Jarred Kelenic to the warning track. It was more than enough for Weston Wilson to come home and give the Phillies the lead.
Wilson, with very limited plate appearances, seemingly finds a way to make an impact every time he starts. In the eighth inning, with right-hander Joe Jimenez entering the game in place of Fried, Thomson could have made the decision to bring one of his lefties off the bench, but Wilson’s at-bats have earned him some confidence from Topper.
“His at-bats are so good it’s hard to argue with,” Thomson said. “I’ve liked his at-bats. He looks poised, comfortable, poised, using the field.”
Austin Hays is currently with Triple-A Lehigh Valley on a rehab stint due to a hamstring strain, though he could rejoin the Phillies as soon as this weekend’s series in Kansas City. If that’s the case, and if Wilson continues the hot streak he’s on, it will be interesting to see how Thomson fares with outfielders going forward.
After Tuesday’s game, Bryce Harper joked that Whit Merrifield might end up with nine hits in this series. So far, he’s reached base safely five times (three hits, two walks) in the first two games he’s played against his former team. But that’s how it usually goes in baseball.
The game ended with a ground ball from Merrifield to Harper, but it was no routine play. Harper had to reach for a ball with a significant turn to secure the win with a bit of drama.
And it was certainly more dramatic than a replica of a random playoff game in August, that’s for sure.
(If you know, you know… if you don’t know…) here.)
On deck:Cristopher Sánchez (9-8, 3.46 ERA) and the Phillies will look to even the season series against the Braves on Wednesday at 7:05 p.m. They will face Spencer Schwellenbach (4-6, 4.04 ERA) for the second time this season.
The team next heads to Kansas City, where they will utilize the rotation of Taijuan Walker, Ranger Suarez and Zack Wheeler. Suarez is expected to return from the injured list after dealing with back spasms. He has been out just over four weeks, having last pitched on July 22. The hope is that the time away has been a reset for Suarez heading into the final stretch of the season. Thomson noted that Suarez will be limited in pitches upon his return. For what it’s worth, he threw a total of 77 pitches in a simulated game last Saturday, where he upped his velocity to 91.
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