An unusual night for Phillies pitching, who gave up 8 runs in loss to Red Sox, originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
BOSTON – It’s not often that the Phillies lose a game in which they were ahead after the first inning. It’s not often that the Phillies lose a game where they had a four-point lead at one point.
That was the case on Wednesday evening.
The Red Sox exploded for five runs in the fifth inning and then scored eight unanswered, handing the Phillies an 8-6 defeat.
This was definitely not a pitchers’ duel when it came to the starters. Both Cristopher Sanchez and former Phillie Nick Pivetta played just four innings apiece. While the Phillies got to Pivetta early, the Red Sox struck in the fifth.
Boston had a pair of singles from David Hamilton, Ceddanne Rafaela and Jarren Duran to start the inning. An errant throw by Whit Merrifield scored two goals and it took some time for the bleeding to stop.
Jose Ruiz replaced Sanchez and inherited two baserunners with no outs. Three more runs were scored before the Phillies could get out of the inning.
This was Sánchez’s shortest appearance since April 23 against the Reds, where he allowed five runs in the 8–1 loss.
“There were a lot of sinkers in the beginning, he didn’t mix his pitches,” manager Rob Thomson said of his starter. “He was behind in the count, so his command was a little off. Velo was there, didn’t command his fastball, didn’t command his switches. They took a lot of balls in the dirt, switches in the dirt, he walked behind in counting.”
Spencer Turnbull, who came in to pitch the sixth inning, didn’t have his best night. You can’t necessarily hit him, though, since he hasn’t pitched since June 1. There’s a difference between being well rested and rusty. Unfortunately for Turnbull, he was rusty. Thomson confirmed it.
“Rust, that’s all,” he said. “Guy hasn’t pitched in 10 days, hasn’t seen a hitter in 10 days. You can’t blame him for that. It’s just a lack of reps, that’s all.”
Turnbull gave up a two-run home run, allowed two hits and four walks.
On a night where you get offensive contributions from all but three players, it’s a loss that only stings.
The Phillies took an early lead with two runs in the first inning. Bryson Stott had a 2 RBI night. Whit Merrifield, David Dahl and Bryce Harper all drove in runs. Nick Castellanos had a double and a triple. They went 4-for-13 with runners in scoring position.
Still, the Phillies have a ten-game lead over the Braves in the NL East.
It was an unusual evening for a club that has always found a way to bounce back after 67 games.
The three-game series concludes Thursday with Aaron Nola (8-2, 2.77 ERA) on the mound for the Phillies. They will face Tanner Houck (6-5, 1.91 ERA).
The Phillies next head to Baltimore for a weekend series against the Orioles to wrap up their road trip.
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