Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports
Phillies Fall to Mariners as Ray Dominates
The Philadelphia Phillies drop game two of their three-game series with the Seattle Mariners despite a solid outing from Aaron Nola on Tuesday night.
This game, more than any other, has encapsulated the 2022 MLB season perfectly. The Mariners reached base on an unprecedented five infield singles, capitalized on the Phillies four defensive errors, and extended innings with questionable decision-making by the umpires.
The Mariners got on the board in the first inning scoring two runs, the second of which came on a swinging bunt for an RBI single by Julio Rodriguez.
The craziness ensued in the second inning with a runner on second when Adam Frazier hit a ground ball to Jean Segura at second base. Segura fired the ball over to Rhys Hoskins who had to stretch and make the catch. After catching the ball, Hoskins’ glove had smacked into Frazier’s body which inadvertently knocked the ball out of the glove.
The baseball trickled over into foul territory near the fence on the first base side, which helped Luis Torrens score from second.
It took some discussion between the umpires and Joe Girardi, but the run did count and Frazier was called safe at second base. Girardi was even thrown out of the game for arguing the call.
Nick Castellanos responded a few innings later with a leadoff home run in the fifth inning. It was the Phillies’ first hit of the game off of Robbie Ray who pitched 5.2 dominant innings while striking out 10 batters.
Jean Segura scored later on in the inning when Ray threw back-to-back wild pitches in the dirt. Segura took third on the first one, and managed to score on the second.
It was the bottom of the sixth where the Mariners turned momentum back in their favor. Nola gave up two base runners with just one out when Brad Hand came in for relief.
Hand walked the first batter he faced to load the bases, and followed that up by hitting the next batter. JP Crawford then picked up an RBI on a sacrifice fly and the Mariners took a 5-2 lead in the sixth.
Nola did everything he could to keep the Phillies in the game, and looked sharp throughout. His final stat line is shrouded with poor indications of his true performance. Nola finished with: 5.1 IP, 9 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 6 K.
Rhys Hoskins kept the Phillies alive by homering in the seventh to make it 5-3. He has now homered in back-to-back nights and has made some solid contact so far in the series.
The Phillies nearly sparked a comeback in the ninth when Segura sent a blast into the left-center field seats to make it a one run game. Ultimately, the Phillies comeback was unsuccessful and they took the 5-4 loss.
After scoring nine runs on Monday, the Phillies offense fell a little flat on Tuesday. They will need more consistency in their day-to-day performance to find a way to the top of the division. The Phillies will have a chance to win the series in the third and final game on Wednesday.
Bailey Falter is scheduled to start for Philadelphia and he will go against Logan Gilbert for Seattle. First pitch from T-Mobile Park is set for 3:40 pm EST.
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