Sing, O Muse. Sing to me of a baseball player with the mightiest of bats. Many hurlers did he face, with pitches that moved as swiftly as Hermes, and sent them all to dread Hades, where they in great multitudes begged for Charon’s passage. Sing to me of brave Kyle Schwarber, and his noble Phillies, and of the loathed Mets, who besieged verdant Citizens Bank Park, and whom at last were bested, fleeing from rain-soaked battle in defeat.
(I saw the Odyssey today, and the game time being moved up left
me without enough time to get it out of my system. I apologize in advance.)
Jesús Luzardo got off to a quick start, putting Francisco Lindor down on strikes and Juan Soto down on a single pitch pop out, but slowed down with consecutive two-out walks. Carson Benge grounded out on a 2-3 play, and the top of the first was over.
Trea Turner led off for the home club, facing off against Sean Manaea, and he made it to first on a shallow chopper that Bo Bichette couldn’t corral in time. What happened next, like the trials and travails of Odysseus, has been spoken of and celebrated countless times, yet never loses its ability to excite: Kyle Schwarber sent a pitch soaring into the second deck, giving the Phillies a 2-0 lead. Manaea hit Bryce Harper, and his teammates compounded the mistake by bobbling a sure double play ball from Alec Bohm, getting only one out; they didn’t surrender any more runs, but the Mets looked thoroughly out of sorts.
They looked somewhat less out of sorts in the top of the second, as Tyrone Taylor sent a solo shot to right. They looked a little out of sorts again in the bottom of the second, as Carson Benge bobbled the pickup of a liner from J.T. Realmuto, allowing him to reach second. They were not, unfortunately, out of sorts enough to surrender any runs.
The Phillies put two on with no outs in the bottom fourth via Edmundo Sosa single and Brandon Marsh walk. A fly out from from Realmuto advanced Sosa to third, but Derek Hill struck out after a protracted battle, and Bryson Stott struck out too, and the Phillies appeared to be as stuck on two runs as Odysseus was stuck on Calypso’s island.
But Athena, bright-eyed Athena, conveyed her vision to Trea Turner, who swung his mighty bat in the bottom fifth, sending a sinker over the fence, whereupon its shade quickly settled into the fields of Asphodel. Schwarber walked, then dashed to third when a pickoff attempt from Francisco Alvarez went sailing on a route that Odysseus himself would refer to as rather off-target. Bohm scored him on a liner to left, and the Phillies were feasting like Penelope’s suitors. Manaea was pulled after a Sosa single and a Marsh K, with Kodai Senga his replacement. Senga loaded the bases with a walk, bringing Hill to the plate, though he struck out.
Orion Kerkering took over for the six, ending a very good day for Luzardo (5 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 K). Orion, befitting his mythological namesake, hunted down a trio of Metropolitans without issue. Senga would not have nearly so neat of a sixth: Swift-footed Stott led off with a triple, his blazing speed easily beating the throw. Even more swift-footed Turner (look, I’m not Homer, I’m not that creative with the epithets) walked, then stole second. Schwarber walked too, and the bases were loaded with none away. Harper swatted a liner to right to score two, and an error on a fly out not long after advanced Schwarber to third. The Mets, perhaps having eaten of the lotus flower, had forgotten how to field.
José Alvarado took over for the seventh, and navigated it without major incident; there was a close play at first that was ruled an out and then overturned, and the runner advanced to second on a wild pitch, but no further. Senga was clearly not at his best, but was tasked with another inning of work anyway. He allowed a single to Realmuto, and then Zeus sent the rains, forcing a delay.
When the game restarted, 10 years later (perhaps less, poetic license), the seventh was wrapped up without incident. The top of the eighth was taken by Chase Shugart, who faced the top of the Mets lineup, and made those fearsome hitters look helpless.
Having pleased the gods, or at least his manager, with that performance, he was also asked to handle the ninth. He hit Francisco Alvarez on the and with a pitch, but as Alvarez had swung, he did not receive the honor of taking first. Instead, he grounded out. Next was a strikeout, and then a quick 2-3 putout, and the game was over.
The Phillies are 55-44. They’ll conclude the series against the Mets tomorrow at 1:35.
