Phillies

Recapping Nearly Six Hours of Baseball That Put the Phils Back Alone in First

By Bob Wankel

Published: Jul 25th, 2018 · 9:38 AM EDT

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On the 484th pitch of the night in a game that lasted nearly six hours, 32-year-old Trevor Plouffe stepped into the box against Dodgers utility man turned pitcher Kiké Hernandez and deposited an 84 mph fastball over the right field fence to once again give the Phillies sole possession of first-place in the National League East after 100 games.

Look over that sentence. No part of it seems real. All of it seems improbable. You have to see it to believe it:

https://twitter.com/cjzer0/status/1021988233276731392

Understandably, Plouffe’s teammates were fired up about his game-winning bomb:

"Way to go Ploufee!….. FUCK YEAH… Sorry, didn't know you were doing your fucking interview"#PhilliesAfterDark pic.twitter.com/uWcw6xQZtJ

— John Barchard | Monetize Philly (@JohnBarchard) July 25, 2018

Of course, the Phillies wouldn’t have even forced extra innings had it not been for Jorge Alfaro’s complete demolition of a baseball that tied the game in the seventh:

Alfaro swings…

…446 feet later…

We have a tie ballgame! pic.twitter.com/FB17pxbE1K

— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) July 25, 2018

But not everybody was excited. Some, even Phillies supporters, were hoping for an alternative outcome in the 12th inning when Chase Utley came to the plate. Fans rightfully cheered Utley prior to the at-bat, but then curiously did so again after he reached base on a single as the go-ahead run of a tie game. A game that would give the Phillies sole possession of first-place. In a pennant race. I mean, who would do that?

Nothing insane about this. People in this crowd like Chase more than any single Phillie on that field. He’s part of a generation of fans. I was rooting for him to hit a home run. https://t.co/4j3NZxys2W

— Crossing Broad (@CrossingBroad) July 25, 2018

I love people accusing me of trying to get a reaction there. Nope. Chase is my single favorite athlete ever. I wanted him to hit a home run, sprint around the bases, take a curtain call, and give us one last thrill. Simple as that.

— Crossing Broad (@CrossingBroad) July 25, 2018

[Editor’s note: I was two bourbons deep at this point last night but I stand by it this morning. I’ve built up a briny layer that is harder to penetrate doing this for a living. The moments that truly move my needle are fewer and far between. And just when I start to doubt myself, along comes Chase Utley to reinject me with his serum, get me all wet-eyed when he comes to the plate and tips his cap, or when Kashmir plays, or when images of World Fucking Championships come rushing back. So, yeah, in that moment, I was rooting for my all-time favorite player to do the improbable and give us one more moment to remember him by. The people with Brian Dawkins tattooed to their balls who responded to my Tweet don’t even realize the hypocrisy of their argument. I am glad the Phillies won, but we would’ve been talking about it for generations if Old Man Chase reminded us all, unfortunate for the Phils as it might have been, what made him so great. Stuff it.]

And some are upset that Dave Roberts, after using eight pitchers in a 16 inning game with the series finale set to resume in less than 12 hours, turned to a position player to pitch:

https://twitter.com/AngeloCataldi/status/1022054872680673281

Damn computer nerds. Oh, well. Can’t please them all. The Phillies and Dodgers will do it again to decide the series at 12:35 this afternoon.