Phillies Blow Golden Opportunity to Take 2-0 Series Lead.

Yong Kim/The Philadelphia Inquirer Staff Photographer

The Phillies came into Monday’s Game 2 up one in the series after a masterclass by Phillies Manager Rob Thompson and some timely Phillies hits which resulted in a 3-0 win. This was the first time all season the Atlanta Braves were shut out at home. The Phillies hoped to continue this trend in Game 2 with their ace Zack Wheeler on the mound. On the other side, Braves pitcher Max Fried started Game 2. Fried had some question marks coming into this game with this being his first game since September 21st.

The Phillies wasted no time attacking Fried tallying four hits and a run scored in the first inning. Phillies third basemen Alec Bohm had the RBI single driving in shortstop Trea Turner giving the Phillies a 1-0 lead. Then for Wheeler, he started lights out striking out six of his first seven with the lone non-strikeout being a fielding error by Turner. In the top of the third, the Phillies added on with first basemen Bryce Harper hitting a single followed up by a two-run homer from Phillies catcher JT Realmuto. Wheeler continued to deal going in order in the fourth and fifth innings. In the top of the fifth, the Phillies added another run with a sacrifice fly by second basemen Bryson Stott that brought home right fielder Nick Castellanos making it a 4-0 game.

Then the game shifted in the bottom of the sixth with two outs. Wheeler walked right fielder Ronald Acuña Jr and second basement Ozzie Albies followed that up with a single to deep right field which if handled properly would have stopped Acuña at third, but a second error by Turner allowed Acuña to score making it 4-1. Scoring their first run of the postseason the Braves carried this momentum into the bottom of the seventh with Travis d’Arnaud hitting a two-run home run against Zack Wheeler making it a 4-3 game. The Braves bats continued to stay hot in the eighth inning against Phillies reliever Jeff Hoffman. Hoffman who’s been arguably the Phillies’ most consistent arm out of the bullpen started terribly hitting Acuña Jr. on a pitch up and in putting the tying run on first. Albies came up next grounding out to first base moving Acuña to second and eventually third after stealing. With the tying run on third third basemen Austin Riley came to the plate and launched a hanging slider into the left field seats giving the Braves a 5-4 lead. Hoffman going slider was a bit surprising as Riley was struggling to time his fastball. With Hoffman switching to an off-speed pitch, it sped up Riley’s bat and allowed him to have the biggest hit of the series thus far.

The Phillies didn’t go quietly as Bryce Harper led the top of the ninth with a walk. Realmuto came up next flying out to center field. Then Nick Castellanos came up to the plate and roped a ball to deep center field that was caught due to a fantastic play by center fielder Michael Harris II. Harris II jumped into the wall and made the catch that not only saved a run but ended the game as well. Harper who tends to be aggressive on the bases got caught as he thought Castellanos’ ball was a hit resulting in Harper getting doubled up.

Even though they blew a four-run lead, game 2 shouldn’t have been that close to begin with. Since the Wild Card round the Phillies have been leaving a bunch of runners in scoring position and that was no different Monday Night. The Phillies had ample opportunity to add on in the first four innings against Fried who wasn’t sharp but were unable to execute. Then in the final five innings the Phillies were only able to score once in the fifth, but nothing after. This allowed the Braves and their all-time offense to hang around and deliver a much-needed win for the Braves.

Now with the series tied at one apiece, these teams head to Citizens Bank Park for games 3 and 4. The Phillies look to bounce back and regain control, while the Braves will try to carry their momentum to Philadelphia and regain home field. Making for an exciting finish for a highly anticipated series.