Cal Stevenson, Buddy Kennedy big hits late, win it for Phillies over Rays
Philadelphia Phillies via X
Late in the MLB season, teams just need to do one thing: win baseball games. It does not matter how they do it, as long as it gets done.
Players that do not always step up may have to step up. That is what happened at Citizens Bank Park on Tuesday night.
With the game tied in the eighth and runners on second and third, Cal Stevenson came in to pinch-hit for Johan Rojas. I disagreed with the call at first, but man, I was so happy to be wrong. Stevenson roped a 2-2 changeup down the right-field line to give the Phillies the lead.
Buddy Kennedy, who came in for the injured Kyle Schwarber in the fourth inning, followed it up with his first hit as a Phillie, a bloop RBI single the other way for some insurance.
Those two runs were more than enough for the Phillies to get a 9-4 victory over the Rays in front of 40,088 at Citizens Bank Park. They have won the series against Tampa Bay, have won 8-of-10, and 13-of-17. Their record is now 87-58 and their magic number to win the NL East is 10.
Ranger Suárez did not have his best stuff, allowing a career-high 12 hits and four earned runs over 5 1/3 innings. His velocity was down again and he lost his command as the innings went on.
But he got some help from his offense, particularly in the first at-bat. Schwarber crushed a 437-foot, 113.9 mph leadoff homer, giving him the Major League record for most leadoff home runs in a season with 14, beating Alfonso Soriano who hit 13 in 2003.
Then in the fourth, Trea Turner broke the 2-2 tie with a two-run homer to left field.
Just before that, Schwarber bruised elbow his left elbow with a slight hyperextension sliding back into first. He left the game in his next at-bat. The Phillies are calling it a “left elbow contusion.” Rob Thomson said he plans on putting him in the lineup Wednesday night, but they will see how Schwarber feels in the afternoon before making a final decision.
The Phils broke it open in the eighth.
Bryson Stott started the inning with the absolute worst luck ever. He smacked a ball down the right field line, it kicked off the umpire’s foot, and right to Jonathan Aranda who beat Stott to the bag. The Phils did not need any luck for what followed.
Stevenson got his big bases-clearing double, Kennedy hot his RBI, and then Turner crushed his second two-run home run of the night.
And then, things got heated. Rays reliever Edwin Uceta, who came into the game with a 0.74 ERA, was very frustrated, and when Nick Castellanos came up to the plate, he got hit by a 96 mph sinker right in the hip. And, of course, Castellanos was not happy about it. He approached the mound and a furious Bryce Harper yelled at Uceta from second base, slowly approaching him from behind. Both benches cleared, the bullpens came out, and the biggest debate in Philadelphia on Tuesday night began.
Also, Matt Strahm walking out in a tank top, shorts, and a man bun was the greatest thing I have ever seen.
Uceta was ejected and both teams got warnings.
We will see if anything happens on Wednesday night with Zack Wheeler on the mound.
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