As Ronald Acuna Jr.’s 379-foot fly ball sailed through the South Philly air out into the left-center gap, I had some doubts. Three straight walks and what probably would have been, at the least, a three-run triple had the potential to rank up right up there with Ronde Barber as all-time soul crushers.

And then, well, Johan Rojas caught it. I don’t know how, but somehow, he caught it:

According to MLB Statcast data, that ball falls for a hit 47 percent of the time. Had it fallen in that spot, this series was almost certainly heading back to Atlanta for a Game 5.

Instead, Craig Kimbrel got three outs before Gregory Soto bridged the gap to closer Matt Strahm (wtf?), and the Phillies ran their record to a perfect 5-0 in postseason closeout games dating back to last season.

As for the Braves? Well, the Braves once again wasted a 100+ win season with a punchless playoff performance.

You hate to see it.

Nick Castellanos Steals the Show

Of course, the Phillies had a lead to protect thanks to memorable all-time performances from Trea Turner and Nick Castellanos.

Turner became the first Phillies player to record four hits in a postseason game, while Castellanos cranked two homers for the second straight night.

Simply put, it was an all-time postseason performance by Castellanos.

Just how locked in is this guy right now? He had a single and a walk to go along with his two-homer night. That’s cool, but check this out. Since Monday night, Castellanos has put a total of 1o baseballs in play with an exit velocity over 95 mph. A staggering seven of those balls topped an exit velocity of 100 mph:

A Little Drama Never Hurt Anybody

There were plenty of tense moments in this one, and it probably didn’t have to be so hard.

The Phillies had plenty of opportunities to put runs on the board early, and they had some chances to extend their lead late. They were unable to do it. Instead, they wrapped an 0-for-6 night with runners in scoring position around three solo homers to eek out enough offense.

They had Spencer Strider on the ropes in each of the first three innings and came away with nothing to show for it, going a combined 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position while leaving five on base.

Alec Bohm’s third inning at-bat with runners at the corners and one away was particularly tough.

Bohm, who was outstanding during the regular season w/ RISP, took an atypically poor approach and popped out on a first-pitch slider off the plate.

The key at-bat was a continuation of Bohm’s postseason struggles. After an 0-for-3 night, which also included a strikeout and weakly-hit double-play, Bohm is now 4-for-21 through six postseason games.

Vibe Check

I mentioned this point in my Game 3 observations, but I thought the crowd was a little slow to get started before the game. Tonight was a totally different story. They came in early. They came in loud.

They also came in with true hate in their hearts.

They were all over Spencer Strider well before first pitch. At 7:36 pm, 31 minutes prior to the scheduled first pitch, Strider made his way out to the bullpen for his pregame routine.  Loud booing turned to mocking “Striderrr!” chants by the time he reached the outfield.

Venom. Stamina. Execution. Well done all around.

Braves’ Frustration Boils Over

Spencer Strider was decent in Game 4. He gave the Braves’ “historic offense” a chance, but the Phillies got to him just enough. It appears by the end of his night, the crowd got to him, too.

While Strider was able to keep his composure through the duration of his appearance, the same couldn’t be said of Orlando Arcia. Just a brutal series for him.

The Game 2 postgame “cackling comments,” Bryce Harper putting him on a poster for the remainder of time and a 2-for-13 performance at the plate.

All of the Lights

It was a nice, unexpected wrinkle by the Phillies to add in a pregame light show. It starts with the fans, but the organization has done a stellar job with upgrading the in-stadium experience in recent years.

That said, I’m not sure I’m quite as in on Welcome to the Jungle in the seventh inning of a hold situation.

Maybe I’m just getting old and cranky or something.

It Was Good While It Lasted

Strider, who averaged 98.9 mph with 15 first inning four-seam fastballs, came out all pumped up.

He looked like a guy who wanted to send an immediate message. Something along the lines of “if you can get a piece of it, you can name it.”

He went all fastballs — 99 mph, 100.2 mph, 99.2 mph, 100.4 mph — in a quick four-pitch strikeout of Kyle Schwarber. Strider followed with 100 mph and 100.2 mph fastballs to Trea Turner before trying an 0-2 slider, which Turner promptly hooked to left field for a double.

The Phillies didn’t score in the first inning, but in a lot of ways, I think it was somewhat representative of Strider vs. Phillies hitters in this series. It was sort of like they said, “Nice fastball, big guy — but we’re going to get to you, eventually.”

Nobody Will Miss Seeing Michael Harris II In Center

It looked like the Phillies would strike first in Game 4, but the for the second time in the series, Michael Harris II made an outstanding run-saving catch to start up a double-play. With Strider’s pitch count rising in the second inning, Johan Rojas lined what at first looked like a run-scoring single into center.

Harris ran down the ball which carried an .860 expected batting average:

Two things here:

  1. Not only did he keep Nick Castellanos from scoring, the catch may have prevented a crooked number with Strider scuffling a bit. Though he is struggling, Kyle Schwarber would have been at the plate with two runners aboard and only one out.
  2. No issue with Castellanos getting doubled up. Strider is tough, runs were at a premium, and I think Castellanos needed to put himself in position to score that run.

Tough One for Turner

Tough error in the third on Trea Turner for throwing on the run to get a hustling Michael Harris at first base. With Harris’ speed, it was a sell-out type of play, but one way or another, that ball can’t get by Bryce Harper. The play set up a shot for Ronald Acuna Jr. with a runner in scoring position.

Fortunately for the Phillies, Ranger Suarez’s defense ended the inning.

It’s Gotta Happen at Some Point, Right?

Kyle Schwarber’s tough series continued in Game 4. You almost have to wonder with several Phillies already delivering key at-bats if Schwarber is in his head a little bit right now.

Strider made quick work of him all three times, including a pair of strikeouts. He’s just 4-for-25 this postseason, including a 2-for-17 with five strikeouts against the Braves.

Don’t Forget About Ranger

Yet another ice cold performance from Ranger Suarez, who limited the Braves to just one run over five innings. In his last seven performances against Atlanta, Suarez has allowed just four earned runs over 35 innings pitched.

On the Manager

I don’t think Rob Thomson’s plan in this game can be overlooked. A little longer run for Suarez. Jose Alvarado in the sixth? Kimbrel for an up-down between the seventh and eighth?  Matt Strahm to close out one of the best postseason wins of this wild two-year run?

Sure. Fuck it. Why not?

Almost everything this guy has touched this season has turned to gold. Is he perfect? Of course not — no manager is. But he continues to prove he’s perfect for this team.