Phillies squander early lead in LA, drop game one to the Dodgers 5-3

The Phillies have dropped 14-of-19 games. They haven’t won a series since they swept the Dodgers in a three-game set at Citizens Bank Park 26 days ago. 

Last night, the Phillies continued their road trip after losing 2-of-3 in Seattle. They lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-3, and watched their stranglehold on the National League dwindle to just a half-game in the standings. 

Aaron Nola was on the mound and threw six innings, allowing eight hits, four earned runs, and zero walks while striking out four. 

Bryson Stott got the Phillies on the board first in the top of the second on an infield grounder that scored Nick Castellanos – who tripled earlier in the inning.

A wild pitch from Tyler Glasgow then scored Stott to give the Phillies a 2-0 lead. 

Bryson Stott RBI Single:

Stotty gets us on the board pic.twitter.com/cEWfaSgml1

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) August 6, 2024

Nola started the bottom of the third coughing up a double to Jason Hayward. He then allowed a double to Andy Pages that scored Hayward that cut the deficit to 2-1.

Shohei Ohtani then hit a sac fly to right field to tie the game, before Teoscar Hernandez crushed a two-run blast to put LA up 4-2 in the ball game. 

In the top of the sixth, Kyle Schwarber singled on a live drive to center. Bryce Harper notched a ground ball double to put two runners on with one out for Alec Bohm, who grounded out to first, scoring Schwarber in the process. 

With Harper on third, Brandon Marsh ended the Phillies’ threat to even the score on a fly out to Hernandez in left. Marsh also had runners on first and record in the top of the eighth and struck out swinging to end the inning. He went 0-for-4 on the night with three K’s. 

Newly acquired Tanner Banks relieved Nola and allowed just one hit that gave the Dodgers all the insurance they needed in the bottom half of the eighth – a solo shot by Shohei Ohtani to give LA a 5-3 lead on the night. 

The Phillies again had a chance to do some damage in the ninth. Nick Castellanos started things off with a single before two infield fly outs from Stott and Austin Hays brought Garrett Stubbs to the plate in a critical moment. 

Stubbs popped out to shortstop, marking the third consecutive out in that fashion for the Phillies and just like that, the ballgame was over. 

This is what the Phillies accepted at the Trade Deadline.

Honestly, I don’t know how you let Garrett Stubbs bat in that situation. This was the problem with the Phillies at the trade deadline. If the big bats go cold at the top of the order and then you’re stuck in a big moment with Garrett Stubbs at the plate, the inability to address the bench and adding another bat to this team becomes a glaring issue. 

Brandon Marsh continues to prove that he is better used as a platoon player in the outfield and there’s no one on this bench that can be trusted in big moments.

While JT Realmuto has definitely been struggling at the plate, for the life of me, I can’t figure out why Stubbs would be the better option in a “last resort” situation at the end of the game. 

While a series in early-August might not seem like a big deal, the Phillies need to win the next two games against the Dodgers. Whatever team ends the season in first place in the National League will have home-field advantage through the NLCS – which could be four games at The Bank or four out west in LA in a best of seven series. 

Cristopher Sanchez will look to get the Phillies back-on-track tonight in Los Angeles. I haven’t waivered from the “no panic zone” over the past month, but once the NL East is within four games, I’ll start to question what the hell is going on.

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