Game 71 - 2021 Topps #171 Hector Neris

Nationals 13, Phillies 12
Game 71 - Wednesday Afternoon, June 23rd in Philadelphia
Record - 34-37, Tied for 3rd Place, 5 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies lost leads three times in this brutal, bullpen-led debacle of four-hour-plus game.

What It Means:  After this ridiculous loss, the Phillies find themselves three games under .500 and only the Marlins, Pirates, Rockies and Diamondbacks have a worse winning percentage than the club.

What Happened:  The Phillies were up 5-0 after four innings when the Nationals scored five runs in the fifth against Vince Velasquez and Archie Bradley.  They were up 9-5 after five innings following a pinch-hit grand slam from Andrew McCutchen.  Sam Coonrod and David Hale allowed six Nationals runs to score in the sixth, capped by a grand slam off Hale by Josh Bell.  The Phillies took the lead one more time in the eighth, only to have Hector Neris blow his fifth save, sending the Nationals to a 13-12 win.

Wasted in the loss was Alec Bohm's first four-hit game of his career, and a three-hit, three-RBI effort from Travis Jankowski, including his three-run home run in the second.

Featured Card:  David Hale's status on this team baffles me.  The current owner of a 6.41 ERA, he's made 17 appearances, allowing his own or inherited runners to score in 12 of those appearances.  But with no Hale cards to post, I'll fall back on closer Neris, who has been frustratingly inconsistent this season.  Maybe it's time he gets a break from the closer's role?

Transaction:  Matt Moore (lhp) was activated from the injured list and Nick Maton (ss) was optioned to Lehigh Valley.

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