Phillies bullpen spoils Aaron Nola’s day, gives up three runs in 4-3 loss to Reds
The Phillies, who have the second-best record in the NL, have as many arms in the bullpen as they do on the IL. That burned them Sunday.
Aaron Nola handed the baseball to Gabe Kapler on Sunday afternoon and stepped off the mound to a standing ovation. The Phillies had a two-run lead, Nola had pitched well, and a three-game sweep of the Reds was just seven outs from completion.
But that lead -- and the goodwill that greeted Nola -- would last just four more pitches. The Phillies own the National League’s third-best record, but they still have nearly as many relievers on the injured list as they have in their bullpen.
And it was those shortcomings that caught up with the Phillies in a 4-3 loss to the Reds at Citizens Bank Park.
When the Phillies constructed their roster this winter, Sunday’s seventh inning would have been an ideal place to insert Tommy Hunter or Pat Neshek or David Robertson. Cincinnati had two outs and two runners on, by way of an infield single and a walk. A big-money reliever would dash in from the bullpen, extinguish the rally, and move the Phillies closer to a win.
But those three are among the seven Phillies relievers on the injured list. And it was instead Jose Alvarez who emerged when the bullpen door swung open.
He threw four pitches and the Reds scored two runs. Alvarez, who would be the last pitcher in a stocked bullpen, induced a grounder from Nick Senzel, but it was hit into the soft spot of the Phillies’ shift and Jean Segura could not make a quick enough throw to first. The inning extended and Joey Votto dropped the next pitch into center field for a two-run single.
Neither of the two hits was blistered, but they were enough to erase a lead. The Phillies will learn more this week about the future of their injured relievers. Edubray Ramos could join the team Monday. Adam Morgan and Neshek could be with them next weekend. Hunter should be starting a rehab assignment. The Phillies could again have a stocked bullpen. Until then, they will have to use pitchers like Alvarez when the game is on the line.
“I think that whole sequence was fairly well-executed,” Kapler said. “From the way baseball works, sometimes the ball doesn’t bounce your way. That’s how I think about that inning.”
Vince Velasquez, who has shown both promise and concern in his transition from starter to reliever, allowed a go-ahead single by Eugenio Suarez. Velasquez was dominant on Friday and hittable on Sunday. The Phillies, moments after Nola enjoyed an ovation and a fourth straight win felt near, were losing.
The Phillies still ended the day in first place, but their lead was trimmed to just one game over Atlanta. It is games like Sunday, where you’re a few outs away from a sweep, that sting the most. The Phillies reached base just eight times, and just one of their three runs felt legitimate. They did not overpower the Reds, yet it still seemed enough to win.
They scored twice in the third inning on a pop-up by Rhys Hoskins that fell in front of first base. Reds first baseman Votto drifted into foul territory and Hoskins barely moved from the batter’s box, believing he had fouled out to end the inning. But then the ball dropped fair. Hoskins was safe. Maikel Franco scored and Bryce Harper charged home to slide under the tag to give the Phillies another run. An inning-ending foul-out became a two-run single.
“I came around third, hesitated a little bit, saw Segura was behind me pretty much right there,” Harper said. “So I said, you know what, I'm just going to go and hopefully a good thing will happen and something did. Got the foot in there, it got us a couple runs.”
Those two runs felt like enough for Nola, who appeared to record the last out of the seventh inning on a grounder to third base. Franco made a strong throw, but it skipped away from Hoskins. The Reds finally had life. Nola walked the next batter on four pitches. He had thrown 104 pitches, the Reds had two runners on base. It was time to let the bullpen get to work.
He walked off the mound to a standing ovation and a loss was ready to unravel.
“I should have finished the seventh inning,” Nola said. “I shouldn’t have walked that guy. That can’t happen right there. I’ve got two outs. I mean, walking the pinch-hitter on four pitches. That’s tough.”