It took 141 years for the Phillies to play their first-ever Game 7. After a heartbreaking 4-2 loss to the Diamondbacks that featured a number of missed opportunities, I think everyone around here would be perfectly fine if it took another 141 years to play a second one.

How the hell did they lose that game? How the hell did they lose that series?

These are just two of the questions that will be discussed in the coming days, but here are just a few of the quick answers:

  • The Phillies went 2-for-17 with runners in scoring position over the final two games of this series. And really, their problems with RISP began back in Game 3. Just consistently dismal situational hitting as the series progressed.
  • An average Arizona bullpen kept the Phillies in check throughout the final games of this series. In Games 6 and 7, the Phillies went a combined 4-for-30 against Diamondbacks relievers while failing to score a run in nine innings.
  • The Phillies scored a grand total of three runs over the final two games of this series.  That can’t happen, especially not for a team loaded with big-time veteran talent.
  • In Game 7, the trio of Trea Turner, Bryce Harper and Nick Castellanos went a combined 0-for-12. The Phillies don’t reach the NLCS without Turner and Castellanos, but they killed them in this series.
  • Game 7 would never have been played had it not been for a series-swinging Game 4 loss in which Craig Kimbrel blew a three-run lead in what was a disastrous outing. That game will be talked about around here for a long, long time.

If you want to throw in a complaint about less-than-perfect starts from Aaron Nola and/or Suárez, you can.

If you want to blame Rob Thomson for a lack of lineup adjustments or his failure to pinch-hit for Johan Rojas, go for it. For me, that’s not where this series was lost. But I guess we have plenty of time to argue about it.

Moving forward, the Phillies will have a number of questions to answer. The most pressing will be how to close the deal on a World Series title after letting one slip right through their hands.

For fans, there will be plenty of ways to digest the city’s newest stinging postseason gut punch.

Some surefire topics include:

  • Can you trust this team?
  • Was this the biggest missed opportunity in franchise history?
  • The 2002 Eagles vs. the 2023 Phillies — which hurts more?
  • Did the Phillies get “complacent” after they got up 2-0?

I’m sure I’m missing some other obvious ones. Whatever. Let’s get to the observations.

Suárez Battles, But Fails to Shut Door

Ranger Suárez didn’t shrink in the moment, but he didn’t deliver the big-game performance we’ve become accustomed to over the past two Octobers. In 4 2/3 innings pitched, Suarez yielded six hits and four earned runs. He struck out six and walked none.

Through four innings, it looked like he was headed for another memorable night, but the Diamondbacks derailed those plans with a pair of two-out, fifth-inning singles — the second came off reliever Jeff Hoffman — that each plated a run.

Perhaps those game-deciding runs would not have scored had Thomson elected to pull Suarez prior to facing Corbin Carroll, who was already 2-for-2, for a third time.

Ultimately, Suarez ran into some bad luck but also managed to dance into and out of trouble. The Diamondbacks began the night 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position before finally cashing in the fifth.

Suárez finished the postseason with a 1.93 ERA and 0.80 WHIP over 18 2/3 innings pitched across four starts.

That’s Why You Don’t Leave it to Luck

In the first inning, Suárez recorded a pair of strikeouts and induced some weak contact, but a pair of singles by Corbin Carroll and Gabriel Moreno set up a first and third situation that would lead to the first run on a weakly-hit fielder’s choice.

Carroll’s infield single carried a .100 xBA (expected batting average). He would score on a groundout that came off the bat at a whopping 53.1 mph.

Bad luck? Maybe, but when a team leaves an entire season hinging on a single game, it puts itself at the mercy of luck.

Carroll’s run marked the first time an opponent scored during the first inning in 13 postseason games.

Pfaadt Keeps Phillies In Check

The general consensus heading into this game was the Phillies would make some adjustments and take care of Diamondbacks starter Brandon Pfaadt. There was no way he could pull off another performance similar to his Game 3 gem.

While Pfaadt wasn’t as effective this time around, he managed to turn in four stellar innings.

Outside of one swing by Alec Bohm, the Phillies’ adjustments on Pfaadt didn’t show up at all through the first three innings.

In the first, Pfaadt pitched a 1-2-3 frame, highlighted by strikeouts of Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper on chases out of the zone. In total, he generated a total of five first-inning whiffs on nine Phillies’ swings.

Following Bohm’s homer to lead off the second inning, he recovered to pick up another pair of strikeouts while generating five more whiffs on seven swings. He then worked out of third-inning jam by getting Schwarber (strikeout) and Turner (groundout).

They finally put some pressure on Pfaadt in the fourth, but he escaped having allowed only one run.

If you told the Diamondbacks they would get four innings of two-run ball from Pfaadt, they would have taken it in a heartbeat.

Quick Observations

  • Tough third inning sequence for the Phillies. With Brandon Marsh at second base and one out, they sent Kyle Schwarber and Trea Turner to the plate with RBI opportunities. Schwarber was called out on strikes on a pitch just beneath the zone. Turner grounded out weakly to third. Money guys have to deliver in money games, and each failed to do so in a potential momentum-shifting spot.
  • Speaking of which, what a crushing at-bat by Nick Castellanos in the fourth inning. With the Phillies leading 2-1 and runners on the corners, a base hit or semi-deep flyball would have doubled the lead. Instead, Castellanos whiffed at three consecutive sweepers. Two batters later, the Phillies left the bases loaded when Pfaadt struck out Johan Rojas to end the inning. One inning later, their failure to add on turned into a deficit. Over the final six games of the NLCS, Castellanos went 0-for-20 with 10 strikeouts.
  • The Phillies put together several atrocious at-bats in Game 7, but Trea Turner’s at-bats in the fifth and seventh were among the worst of the night. In the fifth, following a Schwarber leadoff double, Turner failed at a push bunt attempt. He then did exactly what he had done throughout most of the NLCS — roll over into an unproductive out. In seventh, with the Phillies again threatening, he chased two pitches out of the zone before hitting a weak flyball to center. Turner finished the final five games of the NLCS 3-for-21.
  • Alec Bohm had two tough at-bats late, but he scored both Phillies’ runs. His solo shot injected some early life into the stadium and it looked like his fourth-inning walk was set to spark a multi-run rally…until it didn’t.

  • It was hard to imagine a scenario in which Zack Wheeler coming into a Game 7 in the 7th inning wouldn’t have absolutely set Citizens Bank Park on fire. A a 4-2 deficit with a potentially devastating run standing on second base certainly muted some of the enthusiasm.
  • Wheeler is an absolute stud. He deserved better. Three days after holding the Diamondbacks to one run over seven innings, he recorded five outs without allowing a run in relief. He gave the Phillies a shot late. They just couldn’t deliver.