Phillies bullpen stumbles in loss to Nationals
The Phillies chased Patrick Corbin, and took advantage of the Nationals poor bullpen before showing how delicate theirs can be, too.
Adam Morgan stepped off the pitcher’s mound Saturday night at Citizens Bank Park after watching another Nationals home run soar to the outfield and lifted his jersey over his mouth.
Perhaps it was his attempt to cover up a slack-jawed expression in a bewildering 10-8 loss to Washington at Citizens Bank Park.
Morgan had not allowed a run in his first 16 appearances before Saturday. It was the longest streak ever by a Phillies pitcher to start the season. And then the second pitch he threw Saturday was hammered by Kurt Suzuki for a game-tying, three-run homer. Two pitches later, Victor Robles slammed Morgan’s fastball for a homer to right. His perfect season was tarnished in just four pitches.
“It was tough to do that,” Morgan said. “The team came back and I just didn’t perform.”
The meltdown came just an inning after the Phillies scored five runs in the bottom of the seventh. And that rally came just after the Nationals took a two-run lead in the top of the seventh. The nine-out span provided enough turns for your jaw to drop.
Morgan was inserted in the eighth after Pat Neshek put two runners on with two outs. He had thrown just 19 pitches, but Gabe Kapler decided to use the left-handed Morgan against the left-handed Andrew Stevenson, who was then replaced by Suzuki. Kapler’s decision backfired.
“In that situation you like a fresh Morgan who’s been arguably your best pitcher all year against a pinch hitter,” Kapler said. “That’s the way you make them make the move.”
Friday began a stretch of 23 games in 24 days. The team’s bullpen will surely be tested this month and they did not answer the challenge Saturday. Juan Nicasio allowed two runs in the seventh when he fielded a bunt and threw it into right field. Neshek labored too much for Kapler’s liking and Morgan finally cracked.
“Unfortunately, he’s probably going to give up a run at some point in the season,” Jake Arrieta said. It just came at a tough time. He’s been so good for us and he’ll continue to be great for us. We just had a tough one tonight."
Nicasio, even with his stumble, found himself in line for the win after the Phillies rallied in the seventh. Jean Segura started it with an infield single and Bryce Harper followed with a walk. Rhys Hoskins then pieced together a terrific at-bat before reaching low for the seventh pitch and dropping it into left field for an RBI double.
J.T. Realmuto drove in two runs with a double to right-center and Sean Rodriguez tacked on another with a double of his own. Phil Gosselin added one more with a double to left. The Phillies proved just how dangerous their lineup can be, especially against a bullpen as fragile as the Nationals.
The Nationals entered the game with the third-worst bullpen in the National League. The Phillies survived the challenge of Patrick Corbin and then were rewarded by cashing in on Washington’s relief corps. But then the Phillies showed how delicate their own bullpen can be.
“I think our bullpen has performed well throughout the season,” Kapler said. “Tonight was not our bullpen’s best performance. I don’t need to say that. You know that.”
The eighth-inning rally was needed after Kapler’s decision to lift Jake Arrieta early ultimately led to Nicasio’s two-run inning. The Phillies had runners on second and third with one out in the sixth when Kapler pulled Arrieta for Cesar Hernandez. Arrieta had thrown just 89 pitches, but the Phillies gambled to get a big pinch-hit against Patrick Corbin.
But the game was tied in the sixth inning, the Phillies are in a stretch where they must monitor their bullpen usage, and Kapler said before the game that “we all know the game is not five or six innings long, it’s nine and sometimes more.” It was an aggressive gamble.
“If we have a chance to win baseball games, we’re going to go after them,” Kapler said after the loss. “We’re going to go after them hard, we’re going to go after them aggressively and I’m not going to come off that position.”
Hernandez did not give the Phillies the pinch-hit they hoped for. He faced just three pitches and struck out by swinging at all of them, two of which would have been balls. He was booed as he returned to the dugout. Nicasio, an inning later, was booed as he walked off the field in the seventh. Morgan, an inning later, would be booed, too. And those last boos were just so hard to imagine just a half-of-an-inning earlier.