Categories: 2022 Postgame Recaps

Nick Maton’s big night helps Phillies to snap 5-game losing streak

Nick Maton shined for the Phillies Wednesday. (Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire)

Final Score: Phillies 6, Giants 5

24 hours after he hit sixth for the Lehigh Valley IronPigs in a win over the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, Nick Maton played the hero for the Philadelphia Phillies Wednesday, helping them to snap a five-game losing streak in a win over the San Francisco Giants.

Maton started at second base for Joe Girardi and company Wednesday, and drove in three of the team’s six runs. The first of those came on a successful safety squeeze that plated Odúbel Herrera in the bottom of the fourth inning.

The second and third RBIs came in a more traditional manner, with Maton and Kyle Schwarber each hitting two-run home runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, helping the Phillies to erase a 5-2 deficit to take the lead:

While Aaron Nola temporarily surrendered the lead in a disastrous top of the sixth inning, the trio of Cristopher Sánchez, Brad Hand and Corey Knebel kept the Giants off the board after the Phillies regained the lead.

With the win, the Phillies improve to 22-29.

The Phillies will be off Thursday, before welcoming Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Angels to Citizens Bank Park for a weekend set on beginning on Friday.

Odúbel Herrera Has One Of The Luckiest Innings You’ll Ever See

While the Phillies entered the day with a league-worst -31 defensive runs saved, the Giants were only one spot above at -18.

Mike Yastrzemski robbed Nick Castellanos of extra bases and two RBIs with a tremendous catch against the State Farm sign in left-center field in the bottom of the third inning on a ball that had an .830 expected batting average:

Things evened out in the bottom of the fourth inning, however, and Odúbel Herrera was the beneficiary.

San Francisco pitcher Carlos Rodón seemingly had Herrera picked off with one out in the inning. Instead, first baseman Wilmer Flores fired the ball into the outfield, allowing Herrera to advance all the way to third base:

A batter later, Herrera was seemingly running on contact when Johan Camargo grounded out to third base. But when Giants’ third baseman Jason Vosler fired the ball home, Herrera scampered back to third base before catcher Curt Cassali was able to fire the ball back to Vosler.

Maton, making his season debut, then laid down a safety squeeze. As Flores was unable to field the ball cleanly, allowing Herrera to score:

Bryce Harper Scratched

When the Phillies put out the first iteration of their lineup Wednesday at 2:56 p.m. ET, Harper was hitting in his typical No. 3 spot and DHing.

But by 4:39 p.m. ET, a revised version was shared by the Phillies that had Alec Bohm as the DH, and Harper altogether out of the lineup.

The second lineup came out after Joe Girardi had already completed his pregame media session. Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia reported that the reigning National League MVP was scratched with right forearm soreness.

Harper, of course, has not played in the field for much of the season because he has a small tear in his right UCL. But after the game, Girardi said that the belief is that the soreness today is not related to that injury.

“Our hope is that with a good day of treatment today, he’ll be back Friday.”

The News On Jean Segura Isn’t Good

Harper wasn’t the biggest (or worst) injury news of the day.

Before the game, Girardi announced that the broken finger that Segura suffered trying to lay down a bunt in Tuesday’s loss to the Giants would require surgery. The procedure, which could happen as soon as Friday, will sideline Segura for 10-12 weeks:

Johan Camargo was initially slated to start at second base Wednesday, but moved to third base when Bohm replaced Harper as the DH. Instead, Maton got the start at second base in his first major league action of the 2022 season.

Shibe Vintage Sports Pitching Performance

Carlos Rodón has been one of the better pitchers in the National League so far in 2022, but he wasn’t untouchable Wednesday. The 29-year-old lefty lasted just five innings, allowing six hits and two runs, one of which was earned.
Aaron Nola cruised through five innings, before allowing the Giants to put up five runs in the top of the sixth inning, a frame that saw him throw 32 pitches. The 28-year-old’s ERA on the season now sits at 3.92.

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