The National League Championship Series is in Philadelphia this afternoon for game 6, where the Philadelphia Phillies, who hold a 3-2 series lead, against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Philadelphia struck first in game 1, with two 1st inning home runs from Kyle Schwarber, and the birthday boy, Bryce Harper, as well as a 2nd inning blast from Nick Castellanos. By the end of the 5th, the Phillies led 5-0 against Arizona’s ace Zac Gallen. The Diamondbacks tacked on 2 in 6th and 1 in the 7th, but it was not enough and Philly won 5-3.
In game 2, Aaron Nola, who has struggled this year compared to previous seasons, shut Arizona down for 6 innings, allowing just 3 hits with 7 SO. Nola made a recent mechanical change that squares his shoulders more to the plate and stops him from pulling pitches. This has helped him greatly improve his command and overall performance on the mound. In the playoffs at Citizens Bank Park, Nola has a career 1.57 ERA in 5 starts. The bullpen produced 3 more scoreless innings and the Diamondbacks were shut out, as the Phillies went on to win 10-0, in a massacre of a game.
The Philly bats thrashed the Diamondbacks in one of the most lopsided NLCS games in history. A 4-run 6th inning blew the game open and gave Philly a 6-0 lead after Schwarber hit his 2nd home run of the game, and 3rd of the series. JT Realmuto, perhaps the best catcher in the MLB, added a 2-RBI double in the 6th, and then an RBI-single in another 4-run inning by Philly in the 7th.
The series headed to Phoenix for game 3 with the Diamondbacks in desperate need of a win. Rookie starter Brandon Pfaadt had an incredible outing for Arizona, throwing 5.2 innings and allowing only 2 hits and 0 runs, with a career-high 9 SO. Pfaadt became the first player in MLB postseason history with back-to-back starts allowing zero runs and walks.
Pfaadt was pulled after only 70 pitches in the 6th inning while he was still cruising, which was a questionable decision by Arizona’s manager, Torey Lovullo. The bullpen gave up a run in the 7th to make it 1-0 Philly, but Arizona answered back in the bottom of the inning with a RBI-double by Lourdes Gurriel Jr, who had been hitless in the first 2 games of the series.
The game was tied heading into the bottom of the 9th with Craig Krimbel on the bump for Philly. Arizona got its first 2 batters on, and a stolen base led to runners in scoring position on 2nd and 3rd with no outs. But a good defensive play by the Phillies kept the game alive, with Gurriel Jr. out at the plate, and one out left for the Diamondbacks to work with. In dramatic fashion, Arizona’s hottest hitter, Ketel Marte, delivered on the next at-bat with a walk-off RBI-single, and the Diamondbacks won 2-1 in a hard fought game 3.
Recent Comments