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The Phillies’ six-game homestand against the Padres and Dodgers didn’t go well overall, but they ended it by paying the Dodgers back for what happened in an extra innings last Sunday in a wild 4-3 walk-off win was.
The Phils came away from shockingly sweeping a four-game streak in Los Angeles last Sunday as the Dodgers rallied with empty bases to win the game.
This Sunday at Citizens Bank Park, the Phillies found themselves in the ninth inning with two outs and nobody on board when Nick Castellanos doubled and Jean Segura singled to level the game.
And after the Dodgers took a run lead in the 10th inning, the Phillies came back with two outs when Alec Bohm gently put a ball to second base that Max Muncy couldn’t reach with a glove. The error allowed Roman Quinn to get all the way around from second base for the walk-off run.
“He’s the only guy on our team to score, probably one of the few in the league to score,” said manager Joe Girardi of the game-winning game. “One of the reasons we called Roman was his ability to baserun simply because it makes a difference.”
Quinn came on in the ninth inning after the Phillies pinch hit in the eighth for Odubel Herrera. His first plate appearance came on the 10th and he hit in the opposite direction with two outs. Backup catcher Garrett Stubbs, who like JT Realmuto has speed well above average for his position, slipped from first to third in the game and was nearly kicked out by Mookie Betts, who killed the Phillies with bat, glove and arm this weekend and legs. Quinn moved up to second on the throw, setting up Bohm’s at-bat.
“It’s just one of those things where I (third base coach Dusty Wathan), look at him, trust him, look at the ball and see it out of the corner of my eye,” Quinn said. It’s just one of those split-second decisions.
“It felt great, man, going big out there for my boys.”
Quinn wasn’t the only reserve to survive Sunday. Stubbs continues to produce on demand. This was his eighth start from behind the plate and he’s hit seven of them. On Sunday, he hit his first career home run, walked, put a runner in scoring position, scored in extra innings, hit the match-timing run, and knocked out a third-place runner with a bunt.
In eight starts, Stubbs is 10 for 24 (.417) with two doubles, a triple and a homer.
“He’s a ball player,” said Girardi. “He understands his role and what he needs to do and has done a really good job of staying ready. There are times when he needs to fight back and he can. There are times when he needs to swing the bat and he can. He does a really good job with our pitchers. He played extremely well.”
Rhys Hoskins called Stubbs, his freshman teammate, “more prepared than anyone I’ve ever had in that position for someone who doesn’t play much”.
“He excelled back there,” Hoskins said. “He’s obviously learning from one of the best in the game. … I think it’s a testament to how he’s preparing for court too, he’s been in lockdown all season.”
Hoskins had a frustrating afternoon. In his second at-bat, he smashed a 103-mile line drive deep left center and was mugged by Cody Bellinger. In his third at-bat, home plate umpire Dan Merzel missed a pitch well outside the zone and called it a strike to put Hoskins behind on the count. In his final stroke, Hoskins landed in a doubles game in the eighth inning with runners on the corners and the Phillies losing a run.
After the inning, Hoskins vented his frustration on a trash can in the home dugout.
“That’s fine, bins can be fixed or we can get new ones,” Girardi said.
For Hoskins, that moment was a culmination of his previous three at-bats and the Phillies’ inability to score for most of their 2-4 home stands. They totaled 12 runs in six games.
“We needed a big hit, really, by anyone,” Hoskins said. “We’ve had some big hits, pulled off a weird game of baseball, and those are the things that I think can get a team going.”
Now would be the perfect time. The 19-22 Phillies travel to Atlanta to begin a seven-game NL East road trip against the Braves and Mets. From there they get the Giants, Angels and Brewers, three other teams with odds close to .600.
Suffice to say it was important to leave town with a win on Sunday and make the trip to Atlanta tastier than it would have been at 1-5 weeks home.
“It’s a fantastic win,” said Girardi. “Think of the seven games we played with the Dodgers, we basically fought them tooth and nail seven games in a row.
“We’re going on a seven-game straight journey in our division and I think that was really important.”
The Phillies are happy to be done with the Dodgers, who have beaten them four times in seven games.
Sunday’s pitcher, Zach Eflin, was unable to witness the walkoff himself as he was 15 seconds late back at the clubhouse watching the game on TV. Relying on the roar of the crowd, he knew something must have happened as he watched Bohm’s Grounder run towards Muncy.
“It’s huge, it sets the tone for the road trip,” Eflin said after hitting a career-high 12. “We played really well on our last road trip. It was a huge game for us, that momentum on the road.”
Zack Wheeler will open things up for the Phillies at 7:20 p.m. Monday in Atlanta after throwing seven scoreless innings in his most recent start.
