Entering Wednesday's decisive third game against the Reds, a comeback trend had developed for the Phillies. They had trailed in their past four games, but won three of them. And after an RBI double by Reds rightfielder Noelvi Marte in the fourth, the Phils were trailing for the fifth straight game.
But this time, the Phillies did the opposite of rally, imploding even more in an 8-0 defeat at Great American Ballpark in Cincy to lose their first series of the month after taking three straight against Detroit, Baltimore and Texas.
The Reds already led 2-0 in the sixth courtesy of the Phillies generating little offense against Reds starter Hunter Greene – coming off an injury that had sidelined him since June 3 – before a pair of defensive miscues opened the floodgates for the Reds. Brandon Marsh's errant throw home on a Marte line drive allowed a runner to score from first and allowed Marte to stretch out his hit to third. Cris Sánchez, backing up the throw at home, then threw way wide of third, allowing Marte to come home for the 4-0 lead.
See for yourself, if you can stomach it:
The Phils are still in good shape, as they entered Wednesday with a 5-game lead over the Mets in the National League East. But after another lousy start from Ranger Suárez, the offense generating very little power in one of the game's most homer-friendly ballparks, and another mess from Jordan Romano, some of the concerns that have followed the Phils all season still linger.
Here's a recap of the series:
No offense, but ...
The Phillies struck out 26 times in the series, including 10 in both Game 2 and Game 3. J.T. Realmuto and Nick Castellanos took turns as cleanup hitters, but didn't do much cleaning up. Realmuto went 1-for-4 in the opener and 0-for-3 in the third game. Castellanos went 1-for-4 and struck out twice in his one shot to provide some protection behind Bryce Harper, who himself had just two hits.
In total, the Phils managed six extra-base hits – a homer and five doubles – and scored just one total run over the last 19 innings of the series.
Tampering For Schwarber
It's commonly known around Philadelphia that Kyle Schwarber is in a contract season – and commonly feared that the Phillies aren't hurrying to re-sign him. Now, Phillies fans have another reason for concern – recruiting.
Schwarber grew up outside Cincinnati, and in a sick way you've gotta appreciate the level of tampering the Reds went to by having the Phillies slugger throw out the first pitch to his father – at Great American Ballpark, home of the Reds – before the second game.
Schwarber had clubbed his 41st homer on Monday night in the 4-1 win and doubled against the flame-throwing Greene on Wednesday. The vision of Schwarber sending fastballs into the Cincy night next season is enough to keep Phils fans awake all offseason.
Uncertain future for Ranger Suárez
Stop us if you've heard this before: Post-All Star break Ranger Suárez is not the same as pre-break Ranger Suárez. The Phils lefthander's second-half struggles – an issue from last season – have resurfaced again, as the Reds pounded the southpaw for 6 runs on 10 hits in 5.1 innings. Opponents are slashing .322/.376./.446 against him since the break compared to .218/.272./.312 before it – just an inconceivable decline.
Suárez has lost his last two starts, hasn't won since July 26, and has allowed 11 runs in his past 11.2 innings. His velocity issues are odd given that he didn't make his first start of the season until May 4 and his sudden loss of command is even more puzzling for a pitcher who has made a living working the corners.
Three weeks ago, Suárez looked poised to be the Phillies' No. 2 starter in the postseason. After Tuesday's debacle, Rob Thomson suggested that Suárez could lose his spot in the rotation when Aaron Nola returns.
Talk about life coming at you fast.
What's next?
The Phillies stay on the road, traveling to the nation's capital for a four-game series against the NL doormat Washington Nationals, who entered Wednesday's action at 48-72. It's unknown, per The Athletic's Matt Gelb, who will start Sunday's game:
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