The Phillies ground out a big series win over the Dodgers at home this week. It was a taste of what playoff baseball is like for this young team.
This week’s Phillies-Dodgers series was dominated by Chase Utley’s final return to Citizens Bank Park. Another storyline that went largely untalked about heading into the series was the matchup between two of the best teams in the National League. The Phils and Dodgers had the second and third-best records, respectively, among NL teams prior to Monday night’s game.
After Utley got his well-deserved ovation, the two teams played three well-fought games that gave the feeling of playoff baseball. It was certainly helped by the notable boost in attendance brought by Utley. There were 33,753, 35,028, and 35,659 fans in attendance for each game, making them some of the best-attended games of the year so far at Citizens Bank Park.
Beyond just the size of the crowd, the play on the field was reminiscent of high-intensity playoff games of years past. In Monday’s loss, the Phils rallied from a three-run deficit to take a 5-4 lead over the Dodgers. The bullpen ultimately blew the lead with a rare imperfect moment from Seranthony Dominguez, but the club still kept it close with a Maikel Franco home run in the bottom of the ninth off Kenley Jansen.
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Tuesday’s marathon game was a true battle of wits, going 16 innings. Aaron Nola gave up three runs and Adam Morgan allowed one more, but the Phils rallied with a three-run seventh to tie the game. Jorge Alfaro hit a clutch home run to tie the game, and the bullpen, featuring an appearance from Vince Velasquez, shut down the Dodgers the rest of the way. Trevor Plouffe, who was in Triple-A two weeks ago, emerged as the unlikely hero with his walk-off home run in the bottom of the 16th.
The shutdown bullpen performance is exactly what Philadelphia will need in the playoffs, especially if they have to play in the wild-card game. Big performances from little-known players (think Eric Bruntlett) are another thing that will need to happen.
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Wednesday’s game simply was a good all-around win. Jake Arrieta had a strong performance, effectively dealing with the bad defense around him. The offense exploded in the bottom of the fifth for five runs. Combined with a first-inning Rhys Hoskins home run and an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth, they did more than enough to win the game.
Taking two of three from the Dodgers was no small feat, and their lone loss was still a close game. The large crowd in attendance just made it feel like playoff baseball, and the team felt it too. Manager Gabe Kapler said after the game the team is eying a playoff run: [quote via Joe Bloss of MLB.com]
"“Every series win against a really tough opponent gives us the confidence that we can go deep into October,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “We really believe that right now.”"
The club has a few players with postseason experience (Carlos Santana, Arrieta) but for the most part this a young team that has not experienced the playoffs in the majors. Even though it is only late July, they are already finding out what postseason baseball feels like at this level, and that is huge for their future.
This series showed the Phillies are more than ready to push for the playoffs this year, and it will be a fun ride.