Castellanos and Marsh change the pace of the Phillies’ incredible comeback to start the series.
They trailed by four runs, left the leadoff man stranded in four of the first five innings, and appeared to be doomed to lose another straight shutout, but the Phillies lineup stormed back in the bottom of the sixth and seventh innings to defeat the Braves, 5-4, and kick off a crucial four-game series on a positive note.
Nick Castellanos threw the game-changing swing for the second time in three games. It was a three-run home shot against Justin Verlander on Tuesday. With two outs in the seventh inning on Thursday, right-handed reliever Grant Holmes hit a game-winning two-run home drive.Since the All-Star break, Castellanos has been extremely successful. He has hit.293 with 12 doubles, a triple, seven home runs, and 30 RBI in his last 40 games. If you go all the way back to Memorial Day, he has an OPS well over.800 and has hit.286.
With a five-game lead over the Braves heading into Thursday, the Phillies knew that their advantage might grow to one, three, five, seven, or nine games based on how the series played out. They now know that they will, at most, have a three-game advantage at the conclusion of the weekend. Manager Rob Thomson stated, “Down 4-0 in this kind of series and the guys just kept coming.” “All night long, I felt like the at-bats were really excellent. Charlie Morton’s pitch count was really decent, and we only gave up six walks, not sure how much we pursued. They simply continued fighting.”
Like Castellanos, Brandon Marsh also played a significant role in the victory. For five innings, the Phillies’ offense was nonexistent, leaving four leadoff runners stranded, three of whom advanced to scoring position. The Phillies had gone 14 innings without a score when Marsh took the field in the sixth inning, and they had gone 63 consecutive plate appearances without an extra-base hit.
However, Morton eventually suffered for his lack of leadership following a quick trip to the mound. Before Marsh finally came through with a three-run home run to cut Atlanta’s advantage to one and tie the game, he had walked four, hit a batter, and left them all on base.