For awhile, it was a game. Then it became a party.

The Phillies used eight hits and eight runs across the sixth and seventh innings to blow open a Game 2 annihilation of a Diamondbacks squad that simply looks outclassed so far this week:

Time for the typical disclaimers:

  1. It’s a long series.
  2. Anything can happen.
  3. Since 1592, eight teams have overcome a 2-0 deficit to something, something…

Maybe Arizona bounces back and makes this a series, but on this night, all signs point to a team with a broken will.

As for the Phillies, they look like a team ready, willing and able to destroy anything standing in their way of a championship.

Aaron Nola was brilliant. The Phillies bashed three more homers, including a pair from Kyle Schwarber, in a convincing 10-0 ass-kicking.

With the Phillies two wins away from a return trip to the World Series, let’s dive into some instant observations:

These Numbers Don’t Even Seem Real

The Phillies’ offense is absolutely ON ONE right now. Check out some of the numbers:

  • From August 1st through the end of the regular season, no team hit more homers than the Phillies. They’ve carried that late-season power surge right into October. They have flexed their way to 19 bombs in eight postseason games.
  • Both teams came into this NLCS matchup with 13 postseason blasts, but the Phillies have outhomered Arizona by a 6-1 margin during the first two games of this series.
  • The Phillies are hitting .284 as a team this postseason. They have a .366 on-base percentage. They are slugging an obscene .575 and have a .941 OPS.

Aaron Nola: Big Game Pitcher (Part 3)

It’s been easy to marvel at Zack Wheeler’s absurd postseason numbers: 2-0, 19 IP, 11 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 26 K, 2.37 ERA, 0.632 WHIP.

After six scoreless innings against the Diamondbacks Tuesday night, Aaron Nola is right there with him: 3-0, 18.2 IP, 12 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 19 K, 0.96 ERA, 0.75 WHIP

Together, Nola and Wheeler are a combined 5-0 in six starts this postseason with 37.2 IP, 23 H, 7 ER, 3 BB, 45 K.

I mean, come on. That’s 1.67 ERA and 0.69 WHIP with a 45/3 K/BB ratio. Insanity.

As for Nola, specifically, any lingering questions about his ability to handle the big moment or thrive deep in the postseason should linger no more. Sure, the Phillies put 10 runs on the board, but he threw up six consecutive zeroes, all of which came while the game was still in question.

Don’t Let Them Get Started

I thought one of the most important sequences in the game occurred druing the first inning.

This crowd comes in so amped up. Get these fans an early lead to feed off of and the energy cranks up another notch. The way Nola was able to work around an immediate error by Trea Turner — and give him a shot at some quick redemption — was key.

Not only did he pitch around the gaffe with a pair of strikeouts, he also worked quickly to the plate to keep Corbin Carroll at first. Nola rolled his early momentum right through the duration of his six-inning masterpiece. Following Turner’s error, Nola retired the next nine batters he faced and 18 of 22 overall.

As for that error, maybe Turner felt pressure to get rid of it quick, but that’s a play that should obviously be made. Four errors in eight postseason games is no good, so Turner obviously has a few things to clean up. But hitting safely in all eight postseason games with a .500 batting average and 1.526 OPS — and a barrage of extra base-hits — is good.

You’ll take that tradeoff.

NLCS Schwarber > June Schwarber

Nobody should be surprised that it just took a little time for Kyle Schwarber to get going. You know the whole “June Schwarber” thing. Takes him two months to heat up.

It also takes him two postseason rounds to heat up, I guess.

Schwarber has been held homerless the past two Octobers in 12 games between the Wild Card and NLDS but now has six homers in seven NLCS games with the Phillies.

Great Job by Me

I am wrong so often, as in pretty much all the time, that, why yes, I will not hesitate to point out the following:

On the NLCS preview of Crossed Up: A Phillies Podcast, Schwarber was my pick for NLCS MVP. I don’t know if he’ll get it. By my count, there are about seven Phillies playing out of their minds right now.

Either way, my premise that it was just a matter of time before a clutch player like Schwarber goes off appears to be a sound one.

Did I have to send Anthony a Venmo in exchange for this tweet? The world may never know…

Alec Bohm Makes an Impact

Listen, I’m not going to sit here and tell you it has been an awesome postseason for Alec Bohm. It hasn’t been. But his two-run double in the eighth inning had to feel pretty damn good, especially after getting off to a 4-for-27 start this postseason.

After some ugly NLDS at-bats against the Braves, it felt like that hit was coming. He hit two balls hard in Game 1 and his first-inning flyout carried an .830 expected batting average.

Even if his offensive game isn’t exactly where he wants it at the moment, he played a big role in the Phillies securing a 2-0 series lead.

Bohm started up the game-ending double play in Game 1 that was harder than it looked. In the second inning tonight, he backed it up with a fantastic diving stab and throw to rob Gabriel Moreno of a potential extra base-hit:

Two innings later, Bohm made another key defensive play, diving to his left to record a force out at second base. Had he not, the Diamondbacks would have scored their first run on a Moreno two-out single later in the inning. Instead, they stranded two runners.

There was a time not so long ago when every routine three-hopper and throw felt like a coin flip. Bohm will never win a Gold Glove, but it’s remarkable to think about where his defense was about 18 months ago compared to where it is right now.

An Under-the-Radar Sequence

I loved the fight Nola showed in a fifth-inning leadoff battle with Alek Thomas. Nola quickly fell behind Thomas in a 3-0 count. Instead of losing him, look at Nola’s fourth pitch.

Paint.

The pitch was followed by a peppering of the strike zone that kept Thomas from a free pass and spurred another clean frame.

 

A Clear Game 3 Advantage

Before the series, you could make the case Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly could neutralize Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola. You cannot make a similar case ahead of Game 3 when the Phillies will likely send Ranger Suarez to the mound opposite Brandon Pfaadt.

You know the postseason book on Suarez. In seven career playoff appearances (five starts), he has 1.16 ERA while holding opponents to a .155 batting average.

He’s allowed just one earned run in 8 2/3 innings this postseason.

Pfaadt has been serviceable in two postseason appearances, allowing three earned runs over seven innings of work (3.86 ERA). That said, his numbers in 19 regular season games (18 starts) were pretty rough.

He posted a 5.72 ERA with a 1.41 WHIP, although he did improve as the season progressed.

Through six starts, the 25-year-old rookie had a 9.82 ERA. In 13 games since the All-Star break, he had a 4.22 ERA.

Some other quick notes on Pfaadt:

  • Both left-handed (.867 OPS) and right-handed (.858) hitters had success against him during the regular season.
  • Opponents hit .325 with a .650 slugging percentage against his four-seam fastball.
  • In 10 home starts, opponents hit .314 with an .888 OPS.

Sure looks like the Phillies have the pitching advantage in Game 3.

Quick Observations

  • Bryce Harper was about two feet away from hitting a two-run homer in the third inning that would have effectively ended the game. They got around to taking care of business by the sixth, so I guess that will have to do.
  • No surprise here. The crowd was excellent all night. The Diamondbacks can downplay the environment, but after a game like that, it’s hard to imagine the sellout crowd didn’t have an impact.
  • Nola said earlier this week that he would like to remain with the Phillies beyond this season. Whatever your Nola take has been or has become, one thing is for sure — that man is going to get paid.