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15 Observations as Phillies Drop Game 1 to the Dodgers
By Luke Arcaini
Published:
The Phillies had this game, and they blew it.
Powered off a Teoscar Hernandez 3-run homer in the 7th inning, the Dodgers beat the Phillies in Game 1 of the NLDS by a final score of 5-3.
Here are 15 observations from a game that should’ve been won.
1) Zack Wheeler coming out with the reserves was incredible. Rob Thomson said Wheeler is here because he wants to support his teammates and help anyway he can on the bench. He was in uniform and was announced with the reserves. Citizens Bank Park went insane:
2) Citizens Bank Park was electric for the first half of the game, but man…Cristopher Sanchez’s first strikeout of the night on Shohei Ohtani was insane. I thought CBP was going to explode. Sanchez went sinker, changeup, changeup and got him with three pitches.
3) Sanchez battled out of the 2nd inning. He lost the command a bit, the Phillies had two chances to turn a double play and just got one, and he still got out of the inning.
4) The bottom of the 2nd changed this entire game. Ohtani couldn’t find the strike zone. Brandon Marsh laced a single after an Alec Bohm walk. What a big hit from JT, but I’m still trying to figure out what the hell Teoscar Hernandez was doing here:
5) I thought Harrison Bader hit that sac fly 550 feet. Are the balls dead again? 215-592…
6) Sanchez’s 4th inning may have been his most important one of the night. After a longer 2nd and 3rd, and a pitch count at 51 after 3 innings, it was an 8-pitch inning with 3 ground ball outs.
7) Bader. What a catch, what a gift:
8) Calling all Taylor Swift fans. It hasn’t even been 24 hours since her new album, The Life of a Showgirl, was released, and the Phillies already have a Phanatic skit for it –
9) The Dodgers finally got to Sanchez in the 6th inning. He got the first two outs, then walked Freddie Freeman, allowed a base hit to Tommy Edman, then a 2-run double to Kiké Hernández. Sanchez’s night would end there, but David Robertson tricked Max Muncy with an offspeed pitch on a 3-2 count that lead to a dribbler back to the mound. Sanchez’s final line: 5.2 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 9 K, 94 pitches, 61 strikes
10) Ohtani really settled into a groove after the 2nd inning. He allowed just one hit and hit one batter while retiring 12 of 14 through the 6th inning. Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper, and Alec Bohm were a combined 0 for 11 with 1 walk through 6 innings.
11) I liked Rob Thomson rolling Robertson into the 7th. They wanted to save Matt Strahm for Shohei Ohtani, and tried to get two outs from Robertson without burning another guy. It didn’t work for Robertson. He allowed a single and walked Will Smith in the 9-hole. Strahm froze Ohtani for his 4th strikeout of the night. It’s just the 7th time in Ohtani’s career that he’s struck out four times in a game.
12) One bad pitch. Strahm got two huge outs against Ohtani and Mookie Betts, then allowed a 3-run homer to Hernandez on a middle-high 91.8 mph fastball:
13) Nick Castellanos pinch hit for Bader in the 7th inning. It was a very weird move, until we found out that Bader left the game with a left hamstring strain. Castellanos grounded into a double play to end the inning.
14) The top of the Phillies lineup killed them. Before the 8th inning, the 1-4 hitters in the lineup were 0-11 with 5 strikeouts. They threatened in the 8th, with a Trea walk, Bryce single, and Bohm walk, loading the bases. Edmundo Sosa pinch-hit for Brandon Marsh and got under it, popping up to centerfield to end the inning.
15) The Phillies still played Jhoan Duran’s entrance even when trailing 5-3. It felt a little odd because the crowd wasn’t into it, but I feel like it’s hard to just pull a guy’s intro away. Also, they added real fire above the ivy in centerfield:
The Phillies lose Game 1 to the Dodgers and trail 1-0 in the best-of-5 series. Jesus Luzardo will take the mound for the Phillies on Monday in Game 2.
Luke Arcaini writes about the Phillies for Crossing Broad, covers the Phillies for FOX Sports The Gambler, and co-hosts "Phillies Digest" on YouTube. The wave is the worst thing in all of sports. Contact: lukearcaini8@gmail.com