Needing a win to clinch playoff berth, Phillies come up short against Brewers

Final Score: Brewers 2, Phillies 1

There were two scenarios in which the Phillies could have clinched a postseason spot on Wednesday night. A win over the Brewers would’ve put them in the playoffs. Both the Braves and Mets losing would’ve, too. But Atlanta and New York won, so it was up to the Phillies to control their own destiny. Unfortunately for them, it was not their night.

Aaron Nola was more than solid on the mound. After allowing 11 runs (10 earned) in his last two starts, the right-hander pitched seven innings on Wednesday, allowing one run on three hits. Nola struck out nine Brewers batters and walked one. He looked like the pitcher the Phillies saw for most of the summer.

Milwaukee’s pitching staff matched Nola. Starter Freddy Peralta pitched five innings and allowed a run while striking out nine Phillies hitters. Relievers Joe Ross and Jared Koenig didn’t allow a run in the sixth after the Phillies had two runners on with nobody out to start the inning. Koenig remained on the mound for the seventh and fired a 1-2-3 inning.

The Brewers’ bullpen has been one of the best in baseball this year. It entered Wednesday with the second-best bullpen ERA (3.20) in the sport. Milwaukee’s ‘pen continued to perform at a high level. Four Milwaukee relievers combined to finish four innings, striking out seven batters and allowing just two hits. The Phillies’ lineup had no answers on how to hit the Brew Crew’s stock of relievers.

After Koenig, Trevor Megill pitched a scoreless eighth inning. Devin Williams followed that up by striking out the side in order in the ninth, setting his team up to walk things off in the ninth against Carlos Estévez.

Highlights

• Alec Bohm’s 14th home run of the year gave the Phillies a 1-0 lead in the top of the second.

• The Brewers tied the game in the bottom of the fifth on a home run by Rhys Hoskins.
• Bryson Stott made a nice play in the bottom of the eighth, fielding a ball to his right and firing it across his body to first for an out. The runner, Sal Frelick, was called safe on the field, but the Phillies challenged the play and the call was overturned.

• Jackson Chourio led off the bottom of the ninth inning with a triple. After an intentional walk, a strikeout and a walk, Jake Bauers grounded a ball down the right-field line to seal a victory for Milwaukee.

Notes

• The magic number for the Phillies to clinch a postseason spot remains one. Their magic number to win the division stays at four.
• The Phillies’ 34-game win streak when their starting pitcher finishes at least seven innings ended with their loss on Wednesday. They’re now 34-2 this season when their starter goes seven or more innings.
• For the second straight night, the Phillies struck out 16 times on Wednesday. Altogether, they struck out 40 times in their three-game series against the Brewers this week.

Ticket IQ Next Game

• Thursday, September 19 vs. New York Mets at Citi Field
• 7:15 p.m. ET
• TV: FOX
• Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
• Spanish Radio: WTTM 1680

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