The Philadelphia Phillies kept their postseason hopes alive on Wednesday afternoon at Truist Park, defeating the Atlanta Braves 4-3 in 10 innings during Game 2 of the NL Wild Card Series, as reported by The Philadelphia Inquirer. Alec Bohm delivered the decisive blow in the 10th inning, hitting a go-ahead home run that sneaked over the right-field wall off reliever Fuentes. The victory forces a decisive Game 3 on Thursday.
Phillies Force Game 3 After Extra-Inning Victory
The game appeared to be slipping away from Philadelphia in the later innings. Atlanta took a 3-1 lead in the seventh when Braves hitter Drake Baldwin hit a fly ball that Phillies star Bryce Harper misplayed into a double, allowing the inning to spiral against starting pitcher Cristopher Sánchez. Sánchez finished his outing having thrown a career-high 116 pitches while limiting Atlanta to one run over the first six innings, before rookie Alex McFarlane entered with two outs and runners on the corners to stop the scoring threat.
Rookie Andrew Painter Escapes Jam in Postseason Debut
The turning point for the Phillies’ pitching staff arrived in the eighth inning in a deadlocked 3-1 game, when 23-year-old rookie Andrew Painter entered for his first career relief appearance and postseason debut. Painter struggled initially, missing the strike zone with his first six pitches to Michael Harris II. Following a mound visit from catcher J.T. Realmuto and pitching coach Caleb Cotham, Painter regrouped.
Just me and you,
Realmuto told Painter, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. Let’s go get him.
Painter responded by attacking Harris with a fastball in the zone and inducing a double-play grounder with a changeup. The young right-hander pitched a scoreless eighth and ninth, and returned to finish the game after Bohm’s 10th-inning home run.
I was trying to be super aggressive and go down with my best stuff,
Painter said, as noted by The Philadelphia Inquirer. Knowing the situation we were in there and backs against the wall a little bit, just stepping on the gas there and just giving it everything I had in that moment.
Braves Bullpen Falters After Strong Start by Tyler Mahle
Atlanta’s bullpen was unable to protect a two-run eighth-inning lead, squandering a stellar outing from starting pitcher Tyler Mahle. Acquired by the Braves on August 2, Mahle rebounded from a 23-pitch first inning to allow one run or none over seven-plus innings, becoming the first Braves pitcher to achieve the feat in the postseason since Max Fried in 2020.
However, Atlanta reliever Dylan Lee struggled in the eighth, extending post-break troubles that included a 6.00 ERA over 24 innings. Kyle Schwarber opened the frame by driving a slider from Lee 447 feet into the seats for a Statcast-projected home run. Harper followed immediately by hitting another ball into the right-field seats, tying the game at 3-3 before Bohm’s extra-inning heroics settled the contest.
Decisive Game 3 Outlook
The loss left Braves manager Walt Weiss reflecting on October baseball’s unpredictable nature, drawing comparisons to historic postseason moments like Kirk Gibson’s walk-off home run in the 1988 World Series. Atlanta relievers ultimately allowed three runs on five hits across three innings of work in Game 2.
The series concludes on Thursday with Game 3, which will air on NBC and Peacock. The game is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET unless it remains the only remaining series, in which case it will start at 8 p.m. ET. While the Braves have not officially announced their starting pitcher, Grant Holmes is lined up to pitch at least four innings, with options including Ray Kerr or Brent Suter as openers. Meanwhile, the Phillies have Aaron Nola and Zack Wheeler available to take the mound.
