Phillies split doubleheader with Nationals, Brad Miller hits walk-off grand slam in Game 2
AP Photo/Laurence Kesterson
After Wednesday nights game against the Washington Nationals was canceled due to COVID-19, the Phillies split the unplanned doubleheader to salvage their record before Friday’s 4:00pm ET trade deadline.
Game 1
Zack Wheeler took the mound for the Phil’s and he was opposed by Max Scherzer.
Wheeler would surrender a run on a Gerardo Parra sacrifice fly in the top of the second, and the Phil’s would struggle to hit Scherzer.
The Phillies would get a run back in the bottom of the fourth on a JT Realmuto 111 MPH missle into the seats in left field.
With the game tied 1-1 in the seventh, Wheeler let up a double to Parra. Yan Gomes came up next and blasted a 429 foot shot to dead center field.
The Phil’s didn’t do anything in the 9th and lost game one of the doubleheader 3-1.
Game 2
Christopher Sanchez started for the Phillies and let’s just say he wouldn’t last very long.
He allowed four earned runs on three hits and only got one out before Connor Brogdon came into the game.
Josh Harrison hit a two run shot in the second and Patrick Corbin even got an RBI in the third, and the Nats led 7-0.
“It ain’t over till it’s over,” as Yogi Berra once said.
At that point, ESPN had the Nationals chances of winning the game at 99%, but that meant nothing to the Fightins.
In the third Rhys Hoskins went deep to put the Phillies on the board and then in the fourth Andrew McCutchen and Alec Bohm went back-to-back to make the score 7-3. It was McCutchen’s 20th home run of the season while it was just Bohm’s 7th.
In the fifth, McCutchen recorded another RBI when he hit in Jean Segura to make in 7-4.
The Phillies also lost Rhys Hoskins and Bryce Harper to injury in this game which forced them to bat Vince Velasquez as a pinch hitter in the bottom of the seventh. He would ground out for the Phillies second out of the inning.
The Nationals needed one more out, and Brad Miller stepped to the plate.
Miller laced a single left, McCutchen drew a walk, and Bohm singled, scoring Miller to draw the Phillies ever closer at 7-5.
Ronald Torreyes drew a walk to load the bases before J.T. Realmuto snuck a grounder past the shortstop for a two-run base hit.
Tie game!
Rafael Marchan popped out to end the inning and Ranger Suarez came in to face the ghost runner rule in the eight.
He allowed one run on a single by Ryan Zimmerman before sneaking out of a bases loaded jam.
In the bottom half of the inning, Odubel Herrera grounded to the shortstop for the first out of the inning. The Nationals then intentionally walked Jean Segura to put runners on first and second. That forced the Phillies to pinch hit for Ranger Suarez. They used pitcher Aaron Nola. Somehow, Nola was able to work a walk, even after one of the worst strike calls Phillies fans have ever seen.
Enter Bamboo Brad. Bases loaded one out. Sam Clay looking to steal it for the Nationals pulled ahead 2-1 in the count before Miller turned on a ball below his knees. He knew it off the bat, grand slam, game over.
Phillies win 11-8.
That pulled the Phil’s back to .500 less than 24 hours before the trade deadline, this team needs all the help it can get because as Miller said in his post game interview, “This game ain’t for the weak hearted.”
