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| 2019 Chachi #60 |
Game 109 - Friday Night, August 2nd in Philadelphia
Record - 57-52, 3rd place, 7 games behind the Braves
One Sentence Summary: Despite the best efforts of Vince Velasquez (in left field) and Roman Quinn (at bat and on the mound), the Phillies fell to the White Sox, 4-3, in 15 innings.
What It Means: If Gabe Kapler ends up getting fired at season's end, we may look back at this game as the beginning (or middle?) of the end. I can't help but feel a more experienced manager would have handled his bench a little better, especially knowing he had Jason Vargas making his first start and he'd be down to a six-man bullpen with Hector Neris suspended and Ranger Suarez apparently unavailable due his recent work load. Velasquez still threw his normal bullpen session pregame and was therefore unavailable if needed. Postgame, Kapler called it a, "horse*** situation." Agreed.
What Happened: Vargas pitched well in his Phillies debut, lasting 6 1/3 innings, striking out five and leaving with the game tied at two. The offense couldn't find a clutch hit all night long and they'd ultimately go 2 for 13 with runners in scoring position. In the ninth, now ahead 3-2, Juan Nicasio and Jose Alvarez allowed the Pirates to tie it up.
Featured Card: Fast forward to the 14th inning and the Phillies ran out of pitchers. Roman Quinn, who had homered and stolen a pair of bases earlier in the game, came on to pitch and escaped the inning when Velasquez, playing left, gunned down the potential go-ahead run at the plate. Per this Tweet, he's the first pitcher to have an outfield assist since Ned Garver did it for the St. Louis Browns on May 17, 1950. In the 15th, Quinn was back on the mound and Velasquez again made a great throw to almost get Leury Garcia at the plate. Replay review showed Garcia was safe, and the White Sox had the lead. Velasquez still wasn't done as he made a diving catch to end the inning and limit further damage. The Phillies went down in order in the bottom of the 15th.
Transactions: Corey Dickerson was activated and Adam Morgan landed back on the injured list with a left flexor strain.
I hope that Kapler's comments weren't directed toward the players, but rather at his own decision-making.
ReplyDeleteThis isn't the first (or 2nd, or 3rd, or 4th, or 5th) time his lack of rudimentary managerial skills cost the team (or at the very least, made them look like clown car show).