You’ve got to take your hat off to the Phillies, there’s no question about it, this is a championship level baseball team. They refuse to be intimidated by anything and they showed it last night in Houston. The Phillies were sitting in a five to nothing hole, losing to the team most consider to be the best team in baseball. A team that hadn’t lost one game in the playoffs until last night. Yes the Houston Astros with their ace, Justin Verlander, on the mound.
The Phils didn’t even blink or be concerned about the situation. They just continued to play baseball. It took a couple of innings, as they chipped away at the lead, tied it up and then eventually in the 10th inning, won it on a J.T. Realmuto game-winning home run. Yes in baseball terms, that wound up being the difference in the ball game, but the courage and confidence of this Phillies team was really the difference in the ball game. I mean it was the way they fought back, the mental toughness of the the bullpen that matched the Astros bullpen, which is supposed to be so great. Every challenge that the Phillies have faced they have stepped up to and did what they needed to do to win. You get can’t say enough about the championship hearts that they’ve shown.
When I look at Phillies starting pitcher, Aaron Nola, he didn’t have a good outing but after giving up the five runs he still continued to battle and eventually he got control of things and gave them a couple of good innings before they took him out. Even though he had already given up five runs he made a contribution.
You look at the Phils lineup and everybody contributed. Leadoff hitter, Kyle Schwarber got on base a couple of times and scored in the comeback. Rhys Hoskins got things started in the fourth inning with a single. Realmuto hit the game winner and had a key double in the fifth to tie things up at five. Bryce Harper had a couple of hits and should have had an RBI single, but some bad base running by the Phils cost him, but they found a way to score any way. Nick Castellanos made a game saving sliding catch in the ninth, but also contributed a key single in the fourth inning rally. Alec Bohm hit an RBI double in the fourth, which breathed life in the Phils and let everybody know that they were still in it to win it.
The Phillies bullpen of Jose Alvarado, Zach Eflin, Ranger Suarez, Seranthony Dominguez and Dave Robertson did a magnificent job of shutting down the Astros bats to preserve the comeback victory. Phillies manager Rob Thomson, who has done an amazing job all season, made all the right moves once he saw the team battle back. He went to a starter like Suarez when he needed to do so despite needing him to start game three. The Phils stole this game because there’s no way they’re supposed to win a game down in Houston when the fall behind 5-0.
Now the pressure is on the Astros. They’re supposed to be the best team in the Major Leagues and now the Phillies have their ace Zack Wheeler going in the second game. Yes they have their best pitcher going in the second game and if Houston doesn’t find a way to beat Wheeler, now all of a sudden their heads are on the chopping chopping block. You’ve got to give credit to Thomson and these Phillies. Man they have done a tremendous job in so many ways.
Manager Rob Thomson did a tremendous job of making good decisions. He was urgent last night with the pitchers he called on to keep the game tied after his team battled back. Clearly Thomson outmaneuvered Astros manager Dusty Baker, who left Verlander in the game too long, especially when you see the bullpen he could have summoned. It will likely come back to haunt him because the Phils have taken control of this series by winning game one. I should they have taken control of this series by stealing game one.
This team has exceeded anything anybody could ever have even imagined. This is like from another world the way that they are playing and the way they have put themselves in position because right now they are the favorite to win the World Series title. They did the impossible in game one. They overcame a 5-0 lead against the favored Astros with their starter on the mound in their house and now the Phillies are the favorite to win the whole thing.
