After having swept the Marlins in the Wild Card (this year too all 4 winners of Game 1 went on to win the series, nullifying the extension of the WC from 1 to 3 matches), the Phillies find themselves facing another rival of Division (this would be a change to make: try, as much as possible, to avoid clashes in the playoffs between teams from the same Division), those Braves who beat them in the same round last year, those Braves with the best record in the MLB, with Acuna first in history to finish the season with at least 40 HR and 70 SB (41/73 to be precise), with Olson at 54 HR and 139 RBI, with Strider at 281 K (all three franchise records), with well 47 HRs in the first inning, and 307 total (both MLB records).
Game 1 obviously takes place in Georgia, with Strider rested and ready, against Suarez. Strider scores yet another quality start, with 7 innings, but suffers an unearned run due to his defensive error, and a second on a HR by Harper. Suarez, on the other hand, was removed very early, after 3.2 excellent IPs, just 53 pitches and 1 hit conceded, but the choice turned out to be correct because the bullpen pulled out great for the final 3-0.
Game 2 sees Max Fried against Zach Wheeler on the mound, with the home pitcher conceding runs in the first and third innings. Wheeler starts with 5.2 IP without allowing any hits, but concedes a run in the sixth and above all 2 in the seventh with D’Arnaud’s HR, with the score giving the guests a 4-3 lead. This time the bullpen doesn’t do its job and Hoffman suffers Riley’s 2-point HR for the final 5-4 Atlanta (Iglesias saves, even if Castellanos hits a very deep ball into center field… almost a preview of the future).
Game 3 moves to Philadelphia, with Nola facing Elder and the series tied. Atlanta took the lead in the top of the third, but Castellanos and Harper overturned the result with as many HRs in the bottom, and they didn’t stop there, as they both hit again for the final 10-2.
Game 4 sees the rematch of Game 1 (given the break day between G1 and G2) Suarez-Strider, with a similar trend: Suarez pitches 3 excellent innings, conceding almost nothing, while Strider always has 2 men on base and concedes hits and bases ball but the score remains 0-0. In the fourth Atlanta takes the lead again with Riley’s HR, but Castellanos equalizes in the bottom half, and Turner (3 out of 3) in the fifth gives the home team the lead.
In the sixth Castellanos hits the 4th HR in 2 games (and in 6 AB), when in his career in the postseason he had hit just 1 in 101 AB! He becomes the first player in playoff history to hit 2 HRs in 2 games in a row.
The manager removed Suarez after 5 innings, and used his main relievers in the 6th and 7th, where Acuna batted bases full against Kimbrel but went out.
In the ninth, at 3-1, with 2 men on base and zero outs, Strahm has to save, and he does so with just 8 pitches for the victory which gives the Phillies the passage to the next round, more than deserved.
2023-10-14 05:30:50
#Braves #Play.it #USA
