Bullpen comes to the rescue as Phillies prevail in 14-innings

The Phillies had to play a little longer today, but they came out on top in a series finale over the host Miami Marlins by 3-1 at Marlins Park. The 14-inning marathon win took four hours and 38 minutes, with the win leaving the Phillies at 9-5 on the season and giving them a series victory.

Vince Velasquez took the mound for the Phillies, facing off against Jose Urena for Miami. This game had a very different feel than the first two in the series. The two teams combined for 23 runs over the last two match-ups, while today they combined for just four.

While the Phillies eventually won, they struggled to capitalize on scoring chances throughout the day which could have ended the game much sooner.

This one was a pitching duel with the fourth inning rolling around and the game still scoreless. That changed thanks to Cesar Hernandez, who was getting the start only because he had done fairly well against Urena over his career. In 26 at-bats against the pitcher, Hernandez had seven hits, two of which were home runs, and had six RBI.

Hitting just .178 entering today, the second baseman showed why he was in the lineup, lining a home run just over the wall in the top of the fourth to give the Phillies a 1-0 lead.

The Phillies had a chance to add more when Bryce Harper doubled in the top of the sixth. Rhys Hoskins followed with a single which allowed Harper to attempt to score. Unfortunately, Curtis Granderson, JT Riddle, and Chad Wallach had a different idea. They executed a perfect relay that nailed the Phillies star at home when Wallach made a fantastic grab of a short-hop throw and swiped Harper out at the plate.

In the bottom of the sixth, Velasquez had still yet not given up a hit, and the sense began that he could be up to something special. Brian Anderson changed all that when he sent a ball flying over the fence in left field for his second home run of the season. The solo shot tied the score at 1-1.

The Phillies produced a scoring opportunity in the top of the ninth thanks to hits by Hernandez and Scott Kingery, who had three hits on the day. Andrew Knapp followed with a walk, loading the bases. But pinch-hitter J.T. Realmuto left the runners stranded with a ground out.

The game went into extra innings, and the Phillies bullpen took it up a notch. The group put together 14 strikeouts over eight total innings pitched, and recorded nine straight punch-outs at one stretch. Six of those came from righty Victor Arano, who struck out all six batters he faced in the 12th and 13th innings. Phillies pitchers finished the day with 18 strikeouts in total. It was a monumental performance, one that brings back confidence after the pen had struggled in some previous games .

The top of the 14th was when the Phillies offense finally broke through. Andrew McCutchen

was extremely close to putting one over the fence in his seventh at-bat of the day, but his deep blast to left field just drifted foul. However, he recovered to lace a triple, putting the go-ahead run just 90 feet away.

Jean Segura then made sure that no more runners would be left on base on this afternoon. He golfed a shot over the left field fence that would have made Tiger Woods proud on the same day that the latter was clinching his first Master’s title in 11 years. It was Segura’s second hit of the day, his first home run in a Phillies uniform, and gave the club a 3-1 lead. That would go on to be the winning score as the Phillies secured the series win.

Shibe Vintage Sports Pitching Matchup

Urena had been struggling in 2019 thus far. Going into today he was 0-3 with a 9.22 ERA. However, the Phillies could not seem to find an answer to him. Urena tied his career-high for the strikeouts in a game with seven as he lasted 7 strong innings, giving up seven hits and just one run.

Velasquez, however, was just as good. The Phillies right-hander did not allow a hit until the bottom of the sixth. Until that point, the only base runners were the product of walks, of which Velsaquez had three on the day. He went six innings, allowing two hits and one run while striking out four.

Phillies Nuggets Player(s) of the Game: The Phillies Bullpen

The bullpen has gotten drawn scorn as the subject of general discontent from Phillies fans, but they showed up today. After Velasquez left, the bullpen parade of Pat Neshek, Adam Morgan, Hector Neris, David Robertson, Seranthony Dominguez, Arano and Jose Alvarez combined for eight shutout innings, giving up just three hits with two walks while striking out 14 Marlins batters.

Next Game:

• The Phillies will host the division-rival New York Mets for a three-game set at Citizens Bank Park
• Monday, April 15th, 7:05 PM
• TV: NBC Sports Philadelphia
• Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP, WTTM 1680 (Spanish)