The Philadelphia Phillies took on the Miami Marlins for game 2 of their first NL East series of the year, and the Fightins were looking to follow up their 15-run performance from game 1. It was Dollar Dog Night last night at Citizens Bank Park, and if you missed the first 5 innings waiting for a hot dog (which is certainly possible, considering the near-hour wait times) well, no worries. It was a slow start to the game for both teams. Aaron Nola was facing off against Jesus Luzardo, and outside of a Jon Berti home run in the top of the 3rd, both sides were quiet until the 6th inning. That, though, is when the Nola explosion that we have seen too many times, occurred.
In fairness, Nola was the victim of yet another terrible call by a home plate umpire, as he appeared to strike out former Phillie Jean Segura – an out that would’ve ended the inning – but instead the pitch was called a ball which extended the at bat and helped lead to a 4-0 Marlins lead. It was a disheartening inning, but the Phillies rebounded in a huge way in the bottom of the 6th. Kyle Schwarber led off with a homer, and after a string of hits, Bryson Stott put together an incredible at bat that led to a 2 RBI single to cut the lead to 1… then was subsequently thrown out after over-rounding 1st base. This team is so horrible at base running. It’s destroying opportunities for them early in the season, and they haven’t even been hurt as badly as they probably should have been to this point by those mistakes. I have no idea what is going wrong, but this team needs to eliminate those mistakes IMMEDIATELY.
The momentum was dead from the big inning, and the Marlins would score 4 runs in the next 2 innings to extend their lead to 8-3 and basically lock up the win, including a little bit of history. Luis Arraez, who had 14 career home runs in 4 major league seasons coming into last night’s game, homered in the 7th, and then completed the first cycle in Marlins history with a single in the 8th. The Marlins were the final MLB team without a cycle in franchise history, so it truly was a special moment for Arraez and the Marlins organization. Typing that made me want to puke almost as much as eating 10 $1 hot dogs. It was a rough night for the Phillies, but with Zack Wheeler on the mound for game 3 of the series, the Phillies still have a chance to win both of their home series to start the season. In case this was a little long for you, check out my Phillies In 97.5 Seconds Recap Segment from The John Kincade Show!
