Phillies vs Orioles Series Recap

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Philadelphia Phillies (53-46) vs. Baltimore Orioles (62-38)

Game 1 – Phillies tie it in the 8th inning, but Orioles take the lead back in the 9th to win 3-2 – W: Baker (4-4-3, 3.79), L: Kimbrel (6-2, 3.43), S: Perez (1)

Cristopher Sanchez started the opening game of the series and did what he needed to in order to keep the Phillies in the game with a chance to win. In the second inning, he served up a solo homerun to Jordan Westburg, his first of his career but after that he allowed just three of next 14 batters to reach base on one single and two errors by Trea Turner. The Phillies offense again started slow and didn’t take advantage of the opportunities presented to them. They had their first real threat in the bottom of the fifth inning when Cave led off with a single to right field that the Orioles challenged but was not overturned. After an unsuccessful sac bunt from Stubbs and a wild pitch, Rojas singled to put runners on the corners with less than two outs and Schwarber up. He was able to knock in Stubbs and tie the game at one with a deep sac fly. Turner, who already had committed two errors in the game, struck out looking on a pitch that he thought was low. Letting his frustration show, he began to argue and express his displeasure to the ump who promptly ejected him from the game. It was one of the first times we’ve seen Turner show his emotions in this frustrating first season with the Phillies. The every next inning, Sanchez made his second mistake and Mountcastle hit a 451 shot to center field to retake the lead 2-1. Both teams went down in order the next two innings but the Phillies got something going in the eighth. Rojas led off the inning with a single which was followed by a Schwarber walk. Sosa came up in the Turner spot and proceeded to fail to bunt on two attempts. He fought back in the count to 3-2 and lined a hot shot towards third base. Unfortunately, a nice play was made and Rojas got doubled off second. All of a sudden the Phillies had just Schwarber on first with two outs. But Harper then singled to make it first and second and Castellanos hit a clutch 2-out single to tie it up. Harper raced around third but was thrown out at the plate with a good relay throw. The game was tied heading to the ninth. Kimbrel walked Gunnar Henderson and then, with two outs, Colton Cowser hit a double to score the go ahead run. The Phillies attempted a ninth inning rally but fell just shy after getting the tying run on second base. Phillies lose game one and fall 3-2.

Game 2 – Phillies fight back in the 9th inning to win 4-3 – W: Marte (1-1, 5.02), L: Cano (1-2, 1.82)

Game two started out like so many others since the All-Star break. The opposing team gets out to an early lead and the top of the Phillies lineup is quiet. In this one, Taijuan Walker did an amazing job at keeping this close in the early parts of the game. In the top of the second inning, the Orioles started off with back-to-back singles to put runners on the corner. A double by Austin Hays scored one and there were still runners on second and third and zero outs. A walk loaded the bases still with no outs for Westburg, Henderson and Rutschman due up. Walker miraculous got out of the bases loaded jam with no more damage, striking out Westburg and getting the next two premier bats to fly out. I think everyone at this point would take the 1-0 deficient. The O’s added one more the next inning with a double by Adam Frazier and it was 2-0. The seven-, eight- and nine-hole hitters led off for the Phillies in the bottom of the inning and gave the team a spark. A Bohm double, Marsh single and Rojas single scored one, but Schwarber, Turner, and Harper swung themselves out of the threat. The game remained 2-1 until the bottom of the 6th when Harper connected on one sending it 396 ft to right-center field to tie the game at two. Both teams went down easily until the 8th inning when O’Hearn led the inning off with a solo homer to retake the lead for the visiting team. They could have added more but Nick Castellanos made a terrific play in right field using every inch of his wing span to track a fly ball down. It was 3-2 Orioles entering the bottom of the ninth when Cano took the mound. Turner grounded out weakly to shortstop for the first out but Harper singled to left to get the tying runner on bases. After a strikeout by Castellanos, Stott stepped up representing the last chance. He lined a double down to the right field corner. Harper raced around the bases and this time made it safely to tie the game up. An infield single by JT Realmuto extended the game and set up runners on the corner for Alec Bohm. Bohm took the third pitch past the third basemen into left field to score the winning run. Phillies fight back to take game two 4-3.

Game 3 – Phillies offense wakes up and take the game 6-4 – W: Dominguez (2-2, 4.18), L: Bradish (6-6, 3.29), S: Soto (2)

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, Ranger Suarez and the Phillies dug themselves a three-run hole in the third inning when Suarez left a pitch over the plate to Adley Rutschman who belted it to left field for a three-run shot. However, as the Phillies have done so many times before, they started to fight back. In the bottom half of the inning Marsh led off with a walk followed by a Cave double to get the Phillies on the board. After another walk in the inning to Sosa, Castellanos hit a leaking ground ball up the middle for an RBI single cutting the lead to 3-2. The Phillies took the lead the very next inning with a lead-off single by Bohm followed by another single from Stott. Realmuto then smoked a double that scored two and the Phillies had the lead at 4-3. In the top of the 6th the O’s had a man on second with two outs and Ramon Urias at the plate. He drilled the ball to left field and Cave ventured back. He made a leaping, turned around catch while banging into the fence making quite possibly the best catch of the year. The Orioles wouldn’t go down without a fight though. McCann led the next inning off with a double in the 7th inning and Seranthony Dominguez, fresh off the IL, came in to relieve Suarez. He got two outs but gave up the game tying single before ending the inning. The game was 4-4 when Sosa came up and hit one down the line in right field. He knew it from the moment he hit it as he stopped to watch it sail over the fence and the Phillies retook the lead. They would add one more with a Harper single and the inning ended 6-4. Kimbrel came in, surprisingly in the eighth, to face the heart of the dangerous O’s lineup and set them down in order. Gregory Soto came in for the save in the ninth and made it look easy as the Phillies take the game and the series.

Series Six Pack of Notes/Highlights:

1. Turner's rough season continued into the Orioles series as he went 0-7 with two strikeouts during games one and two and was thrown out of game one in the 5th inning after he struck out looking on a close pitch. He also has two errors in the first game bringing his total to 13 errors on the season. Turner has career lows in batting average (.245) and on-base percentage (.297) while striking out the most of his career at a 23.9% rate. Thomson decided to sit him for game three to give him two days off with the off-day Thursday. It’s been a rough first year so far and the fans are starting to voice their frustration.

2. Stott stays hot and continues to show that he is the real deal. In just his second year, Stott has gotten better in almost every facet of the game. After Stott’s clutch game tying double in game two, Bryce Harper said that Stott will be a super star in this league. By the way things are going, there’s no reason to not believe that.

3. Cristopher Sanchez had been called upon to bring some stability to the fifth pitcher spot and he’s done that and more. In his eight games since being called up he has a 2.98 era and a WHIP of .969. With the trade deadline looming, he has made it difficult for the front office to add a starter and take his spot in the rotation. It’s great to see.

4. Bryce Harper has started to find his footing. In the month of July he is batting .329/.403/.910. It is taking him a bit of time to regain the power that we’ve come to know from him, but he has hit two homeruns in July, one of which was a bomb in game two of this series. It’s a welcome sight to see Harper swinging the bat like he’s accustomed to.

5. Seranthony Dominguez was reinstated from the IL on Tuesday and made him return during game three of the series. He came in to relive Ranger Suarez in the 7th inning with a man on second base. He proceeded to strike out the first batter, get a ground ball for the second out but then let up a single to allow the inherited runner to score before getting the third out on a strikeout. It is a big boost to have Dominguez back in the bullpen to provide even more high leverage fire power for Rob Thomson.

6. Even after the losing streak, the failing offense, and the “sky is falling” mentality, the Phillies took two of three from the best team in the AL. They now sit tied in the top spot of the Wild Card race with the Pittsburgh Pirates up next. Baseball is a marathon and there are still 60 games left to play.

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