Phillies reverse course, win with small ball in 2-1 victory over Atlanta Braves
A day after clobbering seven homers to tie a franchise record, the Phillies didn’t have an extra-base hit. Kyle Schwarber scored both runs, including the go-ahead sacrifice fly in the eighth.
On Thursday night, the Phillies slugged their way to a victory over the Braves. On Friday night, the offense showed a different dimension.
A day after clobbering seven homers to tie a franchise record, the Phillies didn’t have a single extra-base hit. Instead, small ball propelled them to the 2-1 win over Atlanta.
Kyle Schwarber — who was responsible for four of those seven homers on Thursday — scored both runs. But rather than the long ball, they came from solid baserunning.
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“That’s kind of what playoff baseball is about, being able to do it both ways,” said Alec Bohm, who drove in the winning run with a sacrifice fly. “Find a way to stay in games, give this offense a chance. Because if we can keep the game within two, three runs throughout the whole game, we always feel like we got a chance.”
Braves starter Bryce Elder was dominant over seven innings, holding the Phillies righties without a hit. But in the fourth inning, three lefties came through. Schwarber drew a walk, advanced to second on a bunt single from Bryce Harper, and scored on a single from Brandon Marsh.
It marked Harper’s second bunt hit of the season.
“I think in that situation, [Harper] just felt like they gave it to him,” said manager Rob Thomson. “And it leads off the inning with runners on first and second, nobody out. And we go from there.”
In the eighth inning, Schwarber singled to put the go-ahead run aboard. Thomson said he considered pinch-running for him but opted to keep Schwarber in, considering the possibility of needing his bat in extra innings.
The decision paid off, as Schwarber advanced from first to third on a Harper single and scored easily on Bohm’s sacrifice fly to the right field warning track. It was just enough for the Phillies to secure at least a series split, after closer Jhoan Duran slammed the door shut in the ninth.
“I knew coming into that spot, they’re either looking to get me to chase or get me to ground into a double play,” Bohm said. “So just trying to get something up over the plate that I could take off the ground and try to get the run.”
Phillies starter Ranger Suárez battled through five innings to keep his team in it. Although he allowed 10 hits to tie a season-high, strong defense helped him hold the Braves to one run.
“We had to battle and fight every single inning with runners in scoring position,” Suárez said through a team interpreter. “But the most important thing was to try and get out of it.”
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The run he surrendered came in the second inning, after a double from Atlanta’s Sean Murphy and single from Nick Allen. Another single from Jurickson Profar scored Murphy, but Suárez escaped the jam without further damage by inducing a double play on the next at-bat.
“He can manufacture outs, just by pitching and keeping people off-balance and reading swings,” Thomson said. “He’s very, very intelligent that way.”
The Phillies turned three total double plays. None were bigger than Nick Castellanos gunning down Matt Olson at the plate to preserve what was then a 1-1 tie in the fifth inning. Catcher Rafael Marchán applied the tag to Olson, who was attempting to score from third on a sacrifice fly.
“First thing, just get a good jump and catch it, and just get set to make the best throw that I can,” Castellanos said.
The bullpen shut down the Braves the rest of the way. David Robertson (sixth), Matt Strahm (seventh), and Orion Kerkering (eighth) each pitched a scoreless frame. Duran picked up the save with a 1-2-3 ninth.
With a 2-1 lead in the ninth, Castellanos was lifted for Harrison Bader as a defensive replacement. Thomson has not removed Castellanos for defense since June 16 in Miami. On that occasion, Castellanos made what Thomson characterized as an “inappropriate comment” out of frustration after being taken out, and was benched for the following game.
Thomson said the decision to remove Castellanos on Friday was because he was the second-last batter in the eighth inning. If the Braves forced the bottom of the ninth, it would be unlikely Castellanos’ spot in the lineup would come up again.
“So we defended,” Thomson said. “We put Bader in, because he’s best [our] defender.”
After being an everyday player for most of his career, Castellanos has also joined the Phillies outfield rotation recently. He has sat five times since Aug. 9. Last season, Castellanos played all 162 games.
How has he handled the adjustment? “The best I can,” Castellanos said.
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He conceded it was frustrating to sit the ninth, considering his defensive play earlier in the game.
“I think we’re all at the point now where it’s, we’re all in and whatever is best for the team to win a game that night,” Thomson said. “We’re all in. Check your ego at the door, and let’s go.”