Craig Kimbrel blows save, but Phillies’ bats spark comeback 8-5 win in 10 innings

CLEVELAND — Craig Kimbrel was 16-for-16 in save opportunities before he took the mound on Sunday afternoon, ahead of what would become an 8-5 Phillies victory.

Now he’s 16-for-17. David Fry launched a four-seam fastball into the left-field stands, and Kimbrel had his first blown save as a Phillie. He struck out the next batter to send the game to extra innings.

In the 10th inning, the Phillies went to the plate with a sense of urgency as they sought to snap a four-game losing streak. Trea Turner walked, Bryce Harper hit an RBI single to score ghost runner Johan Rojas, and Harper stole second base before Nick Castellanos struck out. Bryson Stott was intentionally walked to load the bases for J.T. Realmuto.

Realmuto drove home Turner with a sacrifice fly to right field that also sent Harper to third. Stott then stole second base, and Alec Bohm drove Harper and Stott home with a single to right field to give the Phillies a four-run lead going into the bottom of the 10th.

It was just the right kind of aggressiveness; not reckless, but enough to put pressure on the opposing pitcher and defense. Manager Rob Thomson has said that he’s looking for his lineup to pass the baton, and in the 10th, that’s exactly what they did. All of their runs were scored by sacrifice flies or singles.

» READ MORE: Phillies held to just two hits in 1-0 loss to Cleveland Guardians, their fourth straight

But the Guardians weren’t done yet. Jeff Hoffman took the mound for the Phillies for the bottom of the 10th and recorded no outs. With ghost runner Will Brennan on second, he allowed a walk, and then an RBI single by Steven Kwan to score Brennan. He allowed another walk to load the bases. At that point, Thomson pulled him for Yunior Marte, who was given the unenviable task of facing José Ramirez with the bases loaded and no outs.

Marte gave the Phillies one of his best outings of the season. He retired Ramirez on a fly to shallow right then Josh Naylor on a pop fly to third, and Myles Straw on a groundout to seal the win. It was one of the more high-leverage spots he’s seen since the Phillies called back him up on June 17. But Marte felt equipped to handle it.

“I feel better now because I’m throwing more strikes,” he said. “I’m concentrating more on throwing the ball over the plate, rather than trying to hit the corners. Not trying to get too picky.”

“Incredible,” starter Aaron Nola said of Marte. “It’s hard, man. That’s really hard to do. Bases loaded, nobody out. Two popups and a groundout. It’s awesome. It’s a big win for us.”

You might believe in baseball gods. You might not. But regardless, it felt like some karmic force was at play on Sunday.

Less than 24 hours earlier, in the sixth inning of Saturday’s 1-0 loss to the Guardians, the Phillies saw a pop fly drop between second baseman Stott, right fielder Castellanos, and center fielder Brandon Marsh to score the go-ahead run for Cleveland. Stott thought he heard Castellanos say something and backed off. Castellanos saw Stott and assumed he would catch the ball. It was a miscommunication.

On Sunday, a pop fly dropped in the sixth inning, but this time it was hit by Marsh. Guardians left fielder Kwan, third baseman Ramirez and shortstop Tyler Freeman went running after it. Ramirez had it on the cusp of his glove but the ball fell out. Realmuto scored the run that gave the Phillies a 4-3 lead.

It was a rare sight from a Guardians team that has some of the best defense in baseball. For the Phillies, it felt cathartic. They had been held to two hits in two of the four straight losses entering Sunday. The top of their lineup has looked lost.

“It was good,” said Thomson. “You make your own breaks. They tend to even out at times. That was a big one.”

Sunday’s win wasn’t easy. It wasn’t a blowout or a shutout. It wasn’t the cleanest of games. The Phillies had to grind it out. They scored their first run on a balk in the first inning. Nola gave up a home run in each of his first two innings. Bryce Harper made a curious decision not to run to first base in the fifth inning, when he hit a grounder to first base.

Thomson said Harper thought the ball was foul, which is why he didn’t run. Regardless, the groundout got the job done. Harper stood by home plate as Kyle Schwarber scored to tie the game, 3-3.

There were a few encouraging takeaways. Harper’s defense was one. In his second start at first base, he caught a line drive from Freeman and tagged Kwan for an unassisted double play in the fifth inning. He made a diving stop to rob Brennan in the fourth. In the eighth, with a runner on first and two outs, he kept his foot on the first base bag and reached out to catch a throw from third baseman Bohm to end the inning.

When asked if he’s surprised at how natural Harper looks at first base, Thomson said he is and he isn’t.

“I am, but he’s an athlete,” Thomson said. “And he’s a baseball player. So, he watches the game. He’s a student. So, in one sense it does [surprise me] and in another sense it doesn’t. You can never tell with the speed of the game how it’s going to affect people, but he looks like he’s been there before.”

Harper’s defense ended up making a difference in a game that had little margin for error. The Phillies looked a little better offensively, too. They drew seven walks. In the fifth inning, Marsh hit a leadoff triple and Schwarber drove him home by legging out a single. Turner moved Schwarber to third base on a hard-hit double (with what might have been his best swing in the past few weeks).

The inning ended in an groundout and a strikeout, but it was a glimpse of the kind of momentum the Phillies need more of.

“I thought we had some good at-bats today,” Thomson said. “I really did. It’s tough because we scored a run in the first, and that’s the first time we’ve had a lead in a long time. And then they get it right back. And then they take the lead. It’s easy just to shut down. But our guys kept fighting, kept battling, so I’m happy for them for that.”

After allowing solo home runs to Kwan and Andres Giménez in the first two innings, Nola settled in. He finished his day after seven innings having allowed six hits and three runs, with seven strikeouts and a wild pitch. He’s now allowed 23 home runs, as many in his 21 regular-season starts as he had all of last season and postseason.

“[Just got to make] better pitches,” Nola said. “Got to be more aggressive. A lot of them, I feel like, are before two strikes, so as long as they’re solos, it’s OK. Obviously, home runs hurt you. But they’re not two- or three-run home runs. I’m going to fill up the zone. That’s what I do. If they clip me, they clip me. But I’m not giving them a gimme. So, I’ve got to make better pitches there and be more aggressive.”

Nola slipped on the mound in the second inning and twisted an ankle, but he was checked out by trainer Joe Rauch and stayed in the game. He said he feels fine. Thomson said the Phillies have “no worries” about it.

» READ MORE: Bryce Harper makes highlight-reel plays in first-base debut as Phillies lose to Guardians