September 10, 2026
Eric Hartline/Imagn Images via Reuters Connect
Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Jhoan Duran (59) throws a pitch during the ninth inning against the Houston Astros at Citizens Bank Park.
After splitting a four-game series against the NL East-leading Braves in South Philly, which included a dramatic last at-bat win Monday, the recharged Phillies knew they'd still be in the division race if they could hold steady before a rematch this weekend in Atlanta.
They tried, rallying from a deficit in all three games against the Astros, but couldn't overcome their mostly cold offense and some costly base-running mistakes.
While the Braves were losing two of three in Tampa against the AL East-leading Rays, the Phillies needed a major rally Wednesday to even the series after two games but blew it late Thursday in a 2-1 loss that let Houston take the series.
Jhoan Duran surrendered a 421-foot homer to Cam Smith in the ninth – Smith's third homer of the series, one each game – that broke a 1-1 tie and the Phillies went quietly in the ninth off Astros closer Josh Hader.
The result is the Phillies headed down south next for a rematch against the Braves starting Friday but still 4.0 games behind for the NL East lead with time winding down. The Phillies missed an opportunity to bridge the gap between them and their division rivals, with just 12 games left in the season after their season series against Atlanta wraps up Sunday.
It wasn't a terrible series for the Phillies, but some mistakes and cold spells in the first and third games really did them in.
Here's a recap of the series:
The Phils shot themselves in the foot Tuesday after climbing back from 5-0 and 6-3 holes when Brandon Marsh doubled home Alec Bohm in the seventh, moving Bryson Stott to third with nobody out and the score at 6-4.
What followed was a base-running disaster not uncommon to the Phillies, as J.T. Realmuto's hard liner to shortstop turned into a double play when Marsh got caught too far off second. Derek Hall then struck out to end the threat.
The Phils made it worse in the ninth against one of the game's elite closers, when Edmundo Sosa followed a lead-off single by Stott with a blast off Josh Hader that just missed clearing the right-field wall – and tying the game – by inches.
Sosa got out of the box so slowly box that he didn't get past second as Luis Arraez scored to cut the Houston lead to 6-5. Had Sosa been on third with no out, he could've easily came home and tied the game on either of the next two fly outs, by Realmuto and Hill. Sosa eventually stole third but got no further as Hader got Kyle Schwarber to pop out.
Base running mistakes and lapses like those have plagued the Phillies at times this season and in the past, and it's become every fan's worst nightmare scenario for the postseason.
"There's really no excuse. Just a really bad play on my part," Marsh said after the game, video via NBC Sports Philly.
Sosa, through team translator Diego D’Aniello, said, "Not running at full speed there is something that won’t happen again," per Jim Salisbury's story for NBCSP.
Mattingly spoke to both players about their miscues after the game, and per that NBCSP story, offered some theories for why he believes base running in general around the sport isn't what it used to be, but his words weren't heeded.
On Thursday, the Phillies tied the game at 1-1 when Luis Arraez scored from third on Stott's grounder to shortstop with nobody out. But Alec Bohm for some reason tried to advance from second to third instead of staying and was thrown out easily.
The Phillies should've had Bohm at second with one out. Instead, they had Stott at first, setting the stage for Marsh to ground into an inning-ending double play.
Amazingly, the Astros made this same mistake in the eighth of a 1-1 game Thursday but still managed to win.
After weeks of struggling, Zack Wheeler finally broke from a rut two starts ago against the Angels, allowing a run on four hits in 6.0 innings, then kept it going against Atlanta over the weekend, holding the Braves to one run on three hits and striking out nine in 6.0 innings for consecutive wins.
Wheeler made it three straight against the Astros, allowing just one run on five hits and two walks while fanning 9 in 7.0 innings on 108 pitches. Both of his walks came in the seventh, when the Astros loaded the bases with two out of a 1-1 game. After a conference at the mound, and with Alex McFarlane warming in the pen, the Phillies stuck with Wheeler and he dug deep to strike out Yanner Diaz on a 2-2 sweeper at the chest.
That's now three straight solid outings from Wheeler, who appears to be back in form after studying his biomechanics on film following a chain of starts in August in which he posted an 8.38 ERA across 19.1 innings. Good sign with the postseason nearing.
As mentioned, the Phillies came from behind in each game of the series, but Wednesday's comeback featured a little bit of everything – good hitting, disciplined at-bats, an Astros gaffe and clutch power from you know who.
The Phils trailed 6-5 in the sixth before Luis Arraez doubled to lead off, followed by Bryson Stott reaching when his routine grounder was botched by Astros first baseman Christian Walker, who had homered earlier. Edmundo Sosa then singled home Arraez to tie the game and Justin Crawford legged out an infield single to load the bases.
J.T. Realmuto struck out against reliever A.J. Blubaugh but Bryan De La Cruz drew a four-pitch walk, and then Kyle Schwarber clubbed his fourth homer in five games, a grand slam that rocked the Citizens Bank Park crowd.
KYLE SCHWARBER GRAND SLAM!! pic.twitter.com/v8STuMP7wM
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) September 10, 2026
Earlier in the game, Trea Turner and Luis Arraez each hit two-strike RBI singles in a four-run fourth that helped the Phillies tie the game after falling behind 4-0.
Sanchez will be the starter for the Phillies' first playoff game, and he should be, but he surely hasn't pitched like the top Phillies starter in about a month. The left-hander has a 4.56 ERA in his last four starts, including Wednesday's effort in which he allowed six runs on 10 hits in 6.0 innings.
Somehow, he's 3-1 in those starts, but Sanchez hasn't been his Cy Young self for the second half. He has allowed 10 or more hits three times since the All Star break, and his 2.79 ERA is almost a full run higher than it was on June 20 (1.80).
The embattled shortstop collected two hits in each of the first two games against Houston and homered in each game to extend his hit streak to six before going 0-for-4 in the grudge match.
Still, Turner slashed .320/.346/.720 during the six-game hit streak with four RBI, five runs scored and a stolen base. They'll need him to carry that hot bat into Atlanta.
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