Phillies-Padres Game 4: A home clincher with Zack Wheeler on the mound is how you draw it up

Seven months ago, when the Phillies first sold themselves and their fan base on an improbable vision, this is how the best version of it would have looked: an October afternoon, a sold-out crowd at Citizens Bank Park, a win away from the World Series, Zack Wheeler on the mound.

Little of the rest of it went according to plan, including the 10-6 victory in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series that gave them a commanding 3-1 series lead on Saturday night. Still, here they are: all the momentum in the world, an ace on the mound, a home crowd that may yet set a new standard for itself.

The thoughts are easy to come by but difficult to organize:

On Friday night, after the Phillies beat the Padres in Game 3 to take a 2-1 series lead, somebody asked the Phillies first baseman if he’d ever seen a player ride a roller coaster like the one from which Jean Segura had disembarked. Segura, the veteran second baseman, had committed an error and was picked off first base but made two game-saving defensive plays and hit the winning two-run single. Hoskins gave the questioner a mock are-you-kidding-me look. Yes, his stare said, I know of another player.

Hoskins, who cost the Phillies a game in the NLDS with a fielding error and then rebounded to hit a pivotal home run in their postseason opener, scaled the latest peak of his postseason on Saturday, crushing a pair of two-run home runs to help lead the Phillies to victory. This came one night after he dropped an easy chopper at first base that led to a run. The guy may not be a perfect player, but he has been perfect at the right times this postseason.

After a pair of doubles on Saturday night, one of which he punctuated by screaming, “This is my f---ing house,” Harper’s postseason line is as follows: 16-for-38 (.421), six doubles, four homers, and nine RBIs in 41 plate appearances. This is not a normal performance, even for a superstar. We’ll see how it ends, but he’s putting himself in the conversation for one of the greatest playoff runs of all time.

» READ MORE: From booed to cheered, Rhys Hoskins ignites the mighty Phillies offense to take a 3-1 lead in the NLCS

Rob Thomson might have overthought this game a little too much, starting lefty Bailey Falter for the first time this postseason instead of veteran righty Noah Syndergaard. Among NL pitchers with at least 84 innings in the regular season, only three allowed home runs at a higher rate than Falter, who allowed them in 4.6% of his plate appearances. Manny Machado didn’t wait long, jumping on a first pitch to give the Padres a 1-0 lead. At the same time, you have to play with the guys you’ve got. By the end of a game that saw Falter record just two outs, the Phillies had used every available pitcher in their bullpen except for Kyle Gibson. Jose Alvarado and Seranthony Domínguez were unavailable after carrying a heavy workload to close out Game 3. They could factor into Sunday’s potential clincher.

These are the nights the Phillies envisioned when they signed Kyle Schwarber and Nick Castellanos to big-ticket contracts this offseason. The Phillies’ 1-5 hitters combined to go 9-for-18 with nine RBIs, 10 runs, and four home runs. In addition to Hoskins’ two home runs, J.T. Realmuto and Schwarber both went deep while Castellanos contributed a double.