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Dodgers Eliminate Phillies on Reliever Orion Kerkering's Brutal Season-Ending Error

An all-time boneheaded error won the game for the Dodgers.

Ryan Phillips

Phillies pitcher Orion Kerkering's error handed the Dodgers a 2–1 win in Game 4 of the NLDS.
Phillies pitcher Orion Kerkering's error handed the Dodgers a 2–1 win in Game 4 of the NLDS. / Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
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Orion Kerkering is going to have a long offseason.

The 24-year-old Phillies reliever made an all-time boneheaded play during the 11th inning of Game 4 of the National League Division Series on Thursday night, and cost his team the game.

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Replacing Jesus Luzardo after the Dodgers put runners on first and third, Kerkering entered the game with two outs in the inning and the score tied 1-1. He walked Kike Hernandez to load the bases, then faced the No. 9 hitter in L.A.'s lineup, Andy Pages.

After Pages authored a half-hearted swing out of the first pitch for a strike, Kerkering got exactly what he wanted on the second—a weak ground ball back to him. Then all hell broke loose.

Kerkering bobbled the ball a bit, then, for some reason, he decided to throw the ball home, while catcher J.T. Realmuto was standing right in front of him, pointing to first base. He chucked it past Realmuto all the way to the backstop as Hyeseong Kim crossed the plate.

Had Kerkering simply thrown the ball to first base, he would have had Pages out by a mile, and the inning would have been over. Instead, the Dodgers scored, winning the game 2-1 and ending the series.

The shot below shows how easy the play to first would have been.

And the photo below shows Kerkering's reaction to the play.

Let's just be real here: Kerkering completely panicked in a spot where he couldn't afford to. It's genuinely sad. He's a 24-year-old who was put in a high-leverage spot and didn't come through.

He'll have to think about that all offseason, which is horrible to think about.

The Dodgers have advanced to the NLCS for the second season in a row and the fourth time in six seasons.

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Ryan Phillips
RYAN PHILLIPS

Ryan Phillips is a senior writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has worked in digital media since 2009, spending eight years at The Big Lead before joining SI in 2024. Phillips also co-hosts The Assembly Call Podcast about Indiana Hoosiers basketball and previously worked at Bleacher Report. He is a proud San Diego native and a graduate of Indiana University’s journalism program.

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