Final: Phillies 9, Marlins 3
Bryce Harper now has 35 home runs and 114 RBIs on the season. (Kyle Ross/Icon Sportswire)
The Philadelphia Phillies (81-80) secured their first .500 season since 2012 with a win against the Miami Marlins (56-105) in the penultimate game of the season. Bryce Harper belted his 35th home run on the season, Zach Eflin was fantastic in his final outing and catcher Deivy Grullón notched his first career major league hit and RBI.
César Hernández began the game by knocking a high-and-inside fastball halfway up the the seats in the lower bowl in left for a solo home run that gave the Phillies a 1-0 lead. It was Hernández’s third lead-off home run of the year and first home run from the right side of the plate in 2019:
César’s prettiest swing of the season.
pic.twitter.com/caSogL7dEq— Phillies Nation (@PhilliesNation) September 28, 2019
The home runs kept on coming. In the bottom of the second, Maikel Franco launched another no-doubt-about-it home run to give the Phillies a 3-0 lead. It was his 102nd and quite possibly the final home run of his Phillies career:
No matter what happens this offseason, don’t ever forget to #BelikeMaik.
pic.twitter.com/K3ouwVMfQA— Phillies Nation (@PhilliesNation) September 28, 2019
The rookies got in on the fun in the third. With a 2-2 count, last’s night’s hero Adam Haseley knocked a slider the opposite way to left for a two-run, two out single to expand the lead to five. The initial ball in got away from Jorge Alfaro and Haseley advanced to second. A couple pitches later, Grullón notched his first MLB hit and run batted in. It was a double into the gap in right-center that scored Haseley:
Grullón’s first hit and Haseley’s 56th hit.
pic.twitter.com/gjUXZKoCpp— Phillies Nation (@PhilliesNation) September 28, 2019
The Marlins would finally get on the board on Starlin Castro’s 42nd career RBI against the Phillies in the sixth. That run would not matter much. A half inning later, Harper sealed the deal with his 35th home run on the campaign. It was an opposite field shot on a high fastball on the outside part of the plate that gave the Phillies a 9-1 lead:
Congratulations to those who took the over on Bryce Harper home runs!
pic.twitter.com/9YYep3lbcS— Phillies Nation (@PhilliesNation) September 29, 2019
On Eflin’s final pitch of the season, Neil Walker launched a two-run shot into the first few rows in right to cut the lead to six in the eighth inning:
It's Tricky to Walk a rhyme, to Walk a rhyme that's right on time pic.twitter.com/0sKkbcEMuU
— Miami Marlins (@Marlins) September 29, 2019
Eflin was pulled and Nick Pivetta came in to finish off the eighth and pitch a scoreless ninth. Blake Parker will start tomorrow’s bullpen game on Fan Appreciation Day . A win tomorrow would secure the team’s first winning season since 2011.
Shibe Vintage Sports Starting Pitching Performance
Zach Eflin: 7.2 IP, 6H, 3R, 3ER, 2BB, 6SO
It’s evident that Eflin has regained confidence in his stuff. He worked efficiently just like he did when he was the Phillies best pitcher in the beginning of the season. It was important for him on an individual level to finish out the season strong and imperative for the Phillies to get innings out of him with the bullpen game on Sunday. He won’t be happy with the home run he gave up on his final pitch, but that should not take away from the fact that he was in complete control throughout most of the game.
Caleb Smith: 3.0 IP, 5H, 6R, 5ER, 4BB, 1SO
The second-year pitcher came into this game with 0.75 ERA in two appearances against the Phillies. He didn’t look as sharp tonight as he gave up two home run balls on two poorly located pitches along with a couple of two out hits that effectively ran him out of the ballgame early on.
Phillies Nuggets Player of the Game: Bryce Harper
What more can be said about this guy? With the season coming to an end on Sunday and after being drilled in the back in the prior at-bat, Harper not only stayed in the game, he launched his 35th home run. The season may not have ended the way him or anyone else had imagined it would, but without a doubt, his first season as a Phillie has been a massive success on an individual level.
Ticket IQ Next Game
- Sunday at 3:05 vs. Miami Marlins at Citizens Bank Park
- NBC Sports Philadelphia
- Sportsradio 94 WIP; WTTM 1680 (Spanish)
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