The Phillies are trying to shake loose from a Game 1 gut punch with a noticeably different look for Game 2.
After dropping the opener to the Braves, 5-3, Philadelphia is leaning on Cristopher Sanchez to keep its season alive, and interim manager Don Mattingly has reshuffled the lineup around him. The biggest adjustment comes in the outfield, where Bryan De La Cruz and Derek Hill are out of the starting group. Brandon Marsh moves into left field and hits sixth, while Justin Crawford starts in center and bats eighth.
The batting order also gets a fresh twist. Trea Turner stays in his familiar leadoff spot, with Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper following him. But the change behind Harper stands out: Bryson Stott, back at second base with Luis Arraez injured, is in the cleanup spot, while Alec Bohm drops to fifth and plays first base.
That creates a left-handed cluster in the middle of the order, with Stott, Bohm and Edmundo Sosa all batting one after another. It’s a bold setup, and one that could make Philadelphia easier to pitch to later if the Braves can get to their bullpen. It also changes how Bohm’s spot plays in the lineup after he had success earlier, when chances against southpaws were sandwiched between left-handed bats.
Sosa is at third base and hitting seventh, while J.T. Realmuto rounds things out from the nine spot behind the plate. Realmuto delivered an RBI triple in the seventh inning yesterday afternoon, briefly putting the Phillies ahead.
Game 1 slipped away after Philadelphia scratched out three runs against Chris Sale and got five unexpected innings from Jesus Luzardo. Jhoan Duran entered in the seventh to try to close it out, then breezed through the seventh and got the first two outs of the eighth before things fell apart. Michael Harris chopped a ball over the mound to reach, Ozzie Albies was hit by a pitch, and Austin Riley followed with a three-run homer that flipped the game for good.
Now the Phillies are asking Sanchez to go deep, because the bullpen situation behind him is far from certain. The offense is going to have to carry plenty of the load.
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Phillies Suddenly Face An Infield Problem If They Reach Game 3
Edmundo Sosas night changed in a hurry during Game 2 of the Wild Card Round, when the Phillies infielder was hurt after hustling down the line to first base. Philadelphia immediately went to Derek Hill as a pinch runner and then had to shuffle its defense around from there, a reminder of how quickly October can turn a clean game plan into a patchwork one.
For a club that may still need to get through a decisive Game 3, the timing could not be much worse. Sosas availability now hangs over the roster picture, and if he cannot go, the Phillies would have to sort out another infield arrangement on short notice while trying to keep the rest of the lineup intact. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Open With A Phillies Problem That Could Shape This Series
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Phillies Just Exposed Their Biggest October Problem Again
The Phillies keep giving themselves the same October puzzle to solve: a rotation good enough to keep them in games, but a roster that has too often asked the bullpen and lineup to carry more than they can comfortably handle. Starting pitching has remained the backbone, yet the offense spent much of the season near the bottom in key metrics and slid even further in September, a rough trend for a club built to chase a World Series.
That concern only sharpened in the Wild Card series, where the lineup included several bats that never really matched the moment. Philadelphia has the kind of top-end talent that can change a series in a hurry, but the bigger question is whether the rest of the order can provide enough consistent support once the margins tighten and every at-bat starts to feel like a test. [Read more 🡒]