Final: Phillies 9, Braves 1
The longest tenured Phillies pitcher and longest tenured Phillies hitter carried the team to a massive victory in a playoff race. Aaron Nola and Rhys Hoskins, a pair of Phillies homegrown stars hungry to one day play postseason baseball, stepped up in the Phillies’ 9-1 win over the Atlanta Braves.
Nola is second to only Jordan Lyles among active pitchers in games started without a postseason appearance. Hoskins is well behind teammates Jean Segura and J.T. Realmuto in games played without postseason baseball, but he and Nola, whether it’s fair or not, have so often been the focal point of discussions centered around why the Phillies have failed to get over the hump in the last five years.
For the Phillies, it’s great to see both of them thrive at the same time.
Hoskins went 3-for-4 with a single, double and home run. He was a triple shy of the cycle for the ninth time in his career and first since June 14, 2022 against the Miami Marlins.
Nola threw six shutout innings while striking out eight Atlanta hitters. Per the team, he is the third Phillies pitcher with at least 200 strikeouts and fewer than 30 walks in a season since Roy Halladay (2010) and Cliff Lee (2012). Oddly enough, tonight was not Nola’s best night in terms of command. Tonight’s game marked the first time he walked three batters in an outing since his April 14 start against the Mets.
It wasn’t pretty, but he didn’t need it to be. He received nine runs of support, more than he’s had in his last four starts combined. The offensive onslaught combined with good starting pitching gave the Phillies a chance to reset the bullpen. Nick Nelson pitched two innings while Connor Brogdon capped the night off with a very low leverage ninth inning appearance.
“A lot of pitches, but long innings,” Rob Thomson said on Nola’s outing. “Because we hit for a while tonight, sometimes it’s tough to sit down for as long as he did and come back and stay sharp. He did great. He battled through a couple tough innings where he had multiple baserunners and just got it done.”
Shibe Vintage Sports Notes
- The Phillies’ magic number has dropped to single digits. A combination of nine Phillies wins or Brewers losses will give the Phillies their first postseason berth since 2011. Behind Andrew McCutchen’s big night at the plate, Milwaukee earned a 5-3 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Friday.
- Thomson said after the game that Brandon Marsh irritated his left knee after his second at-bat. They’ll reevaluate tomorrow. As of now, he’s in the lineup for tomorrow, but if the knee is still sore, they’ll keep him out. “I don’t think there’s anything structurally wrong, it’s just a little sore,” Thomson said.
- With 77 home runs at home, Hoskins is now in fourth place on the all-time home run list at Citizens Bank Park. Ryan Howard (198), Chase Utley (129) and Jimmy Rollins (94) are the only Phillies with more.
- Hoskins also recorded career RBI No. 400 on his two-run double in the second inning.
Ticket IQ Next Game
- Saturday, September 24 vs. Atlanta Braves at Citizens Bank Park
- 4:05 p.m. ET
- TV: NBC Sports Philadelphia
- Radio: Sportsradio 94 WIP
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