Alex McFarlane Fails First Real Test With Phillies Against Braves

Alex McFarlane was unable to step up when the Philadelphia Phillies needed him most against the Atlanta Braves.

Sep 6, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Alex McFarlane (71) throws a pitch during the eighth inning against the Atlanta Braves at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Philadelphia Phillies have had some real struggles when it comes to their bullpen in key moments over the last few years.

In their postseason runs, the bullpen has hemorrhaged runs, blowing stellar performances by the starting rotation with regularity. That happened in Game 1 of their massively important four-game series with the Atlanta Braves, which prompted a change from interim manager Don Mattingly.

Orion Kerkering, who had been the No. 1 right-handed option to bridge the gap to All-Star closer Jhoan Duran, was going to have his role changed after he served up a two-run home run to Mauricio Dubon. Jonathan Bowlan, another emerging option, pitched in Game 2 and gave up a run for the third time in four outings.

That created an opportunity for rookie Alex McFarlane. He had been excellent thus far, allowing only one earned run in 11.1 innings, albeit in lower-leverage situations. But he did dominate the Braves in Game 1, needing only eight pitches, all of which were strikes, to get through the seventh inning.

Alex McFarlane came up short for Phillies against Braves

Aug 11, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Alex McFarlane (71) throws against the St. Louis Cardinals during the seventh inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

So, with the Phillies up 4-1 entering the eighth inning of Game 3, needing only six outs after a strong start from Aaron Nola to cut their deficit in the National League East to three games, it was McFarlane who was called upon for his first real test in the MLB.

Unfortunately for Philadelphia, he didn’t ace this one. After getting Austin Riley to line out to start the inning, the wheels fell off. Mike Yastrzemski followed with a single before Drake Baldwin hit a double.

With men on second and third, McFarlane faced off with Ronald Acuna Jr. He had already hit one towering home run in the series off Zack Wheeler, which drew the ire of the veteran starting pitcher with how he celebrated the long ball.

RONALD TIE GAME 💣@ronaldacunajr24 | #BravesCountry pic.twitter.com/XWfkDNnwWN

— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) September 6, 2026

The star right fielder would get the last laugh, as he hit a no-doubter off McFarlane to tie the game at four. Brooks Raley came out of the bullpen in relief of the rookie, who failed to meet expectations in his first opportunity to seize a setup role ahead of Duran, who was saddled with the loss after giving up a run in the ninth.

It was an incredibly disappointing turn of events. Instead of being three games back in the standings, the Phillies entered the series finale on Monday afternoon five games behind and having now lost the season-long tiebreaker.

Catching Atlanta in the NL East is going to be a gargantuan task at this point, with the tiebreaker essentially giving them another half-game in the standings. Philadelphia will certainly fight to the bitter end, but they have some major issues to iron out with the bullpen heading down the stretch and into the playoffs.

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