The way the Phillies have played over the past week, it felt like they might never lose again. And set up with a chance to clinch the National League East title in front of their home fans, it felt like a foregone conclusion that they would take care of business against the Kansas City Royals on Sunday. But thanks to a sixth inning collapse by Aaron Nola, and an offense that quieted down after a hot start, the Phillies fell by a score of 10-3, robbing themselves of an opportunity to have an on-field
celebration.
The Phillies’ offense picked up where it left off on Saturday night when solo home runs by Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto staked the Phillies to a 2-0 lead.
Nola looked to be in command early. He retired the first nine batters of the game and then worked out of some trouble in the fourth. But in the fifth, he ran into his old nemesis: The home run ball. With one man aboard, he gave up a game-tying shot to Jac Caglianone.
And then, things unraveled in the sixth. Bobby Witt led off with a triple, and Vinny Pasquantino drove him in with a double. Maikel Garcia followed with a single, and then Salvador Perez hit his third home run in the past two days to blow things open.
I’m going to write something longer on the subject, but there have been far too many instances where a Phillies pitcher has an otherwise strong game, but there’s one inning where they can’t stop giving up hits. Aaron Nola is the biggest offender, but he’s certainly not alone.
The Royals piled on against the Phillies’ bullpen while the Phillies’ offense didn’t do much after the first inning. Royals’ starter Noah Cameron settled in nicely, giving up only two hits the rest of the way, and the only run the Phillies managed was a too little, too late home run by Bryson Stott in the eighth.
At the time of writing, the Mets were tied with the Rangers, and knowing their bullpen, it’s still very possible that the Phillies could clinch on Sunday. But either way, with a important series against the Dodgers looming, they need to quickly move past this one and resume their winning ways.
