The Phillies have lost 8 games this year in which they have led by three or more runs. The Philles’ bullpen has a 7.17 ERA, on pace to be the worst in baseball in 90 years and the second worst in history.

With the season on the line, tonight was no different. With their backs against the wall, the Phillies jumped out to a 4-1 lead against the Tampa Bay Rays and then the offense went cold and the bullpen blew it. The Phillies battled until the 8th inning before Adam Morgan let up 2-runs to put the Rays up 6-4.

Ballgame over.

Alec Bohm went 2-4 with an RBI. Bohm is now 19-for-41 with RISP. His .463 batting average in those situations is the best in Major League Baseball. Bryce Harper also played well going 2 for 3 with an RBI.

Girardi didn’t manage this game well. You can question whether or not he pulled the plug on Vinny Velasquez too early or if Connor Brogdon should have stayed in the game after striking out the side in the 7th inning, but at the end of the day if the Phillies bullpen was even AVERAGE, they would have clinched a playoff berth weeks ago.

The Marlins defeated the Yankees in extra innings. The Phillies have no shot at 2nd place in the NL East and will have to rely on the pack of other teams to keep their Wild Card hopes alive.

Pretty much all options from the chart made earlier today are dead in the water. Unlike the last two days, the Phillies did not get any help today.

The Phillies’ best chance to make the postseason is winning their final two games and hoping that the Giants lose 1 of 2 against the Padres in San Francisco. The Phillies own the tiebreaker over the Giants. If both teams finish 30-30, the Phillies would win the 8th seed in the playoffs.

The other route would be for the Cardinals to lose consecutive games since they own the tiebreaker vs Phillies. Obviously, this seems very unlikely.

From a team that had 87% odds to make the playoffs a week ago, the Phillies now sit at 29.1%.

Mandatory Credit: The Philadelphia Philles