The Kids Are Alright: Phillies storm back with 8-Run 9th to beat Yankees in Spring Training thriller

Hand up — I’ll admit it. I haven’t exactly been locked in on Phillies Spring Training this year. And who could blame me? The core is intact, the roster is basically set, and outside of a few lingering injury updates and a final bench spot or two, there hasn’t been much worth freaking out about down in Clearwater.

But Saturday was fun…

Down 7-0 heading into the ninth inning in a meaningless Grapefruit League game against the Yankees, the Fightins broke out the rally caps and pulled off a completely unnecessary — but incredibly enjoyable — 8-run ninth to stun New York, 8-7.

And it was the kids who did it. A bunch of minor leaguers, prospects, and guys fighting for a spot made their presence felt, capped off by 22-year-old Robert Moore going kaboom with a three-run tank to right.

The Phillies Entered the 9th down 7-0 to the Yankees

The @Phillies entered the 9th inning down 7-0.

This home run put them up 8-7! #SpringTraining pic.twitter.com/lk6EknI97h

— MLB (@MLB) March 22, 2025

Let’s run it back real quick, because this inning was pure Spring Training chaos.

Phillies Ninth-Inning Play-by-Play:

• Buddy Kennedy strikes out swinging (not great when you’re fighting for a roster spot).
• Avery Owusu-Asiedu singles.
• Kody Clemens singles — back-to-back knocks, okay, something brewing.
• Josh Breaux singles — bases loaded.
• Elio Prado walks — first run in, still down 7-1.
• Luis Verdugo ropes a double — 7-3 now, bases still juiced.
• Felix Reyes reaches on an error — Prado scores, 7-4.
• Marcus Lee Sang doubles — 7-5 and Reyes now 90 feet from tying it.
• Robert Moore unleashes hell — a no-doubt three-run homer. 8-7 Phillies.

Unreal.

🔥 VERDUGO CON LAS BASES LLENAS 🔥

Luis Roberto Verdugo🇲🇽 respondió frente a @Yankees con doblete con las bases llenas para remolcar 2 carreras a favor de @Phillies.

Buena pretemporada para el mexicano. pic.twitter.com/KwJn4MIyQJ

— Miguel Lugo (@_MiguelLugo) March 22, 2025

Buddy Kennedy: Not Great

While most of the kids showed out, let’s not forget that Buddy Kennedy made two of the three outs in the inning, including a flyout to end the frame after all the madness. That’s not the kind of impression you want to leave when the roster is basically down to you and Kody Clemens for the final bench spot.

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Kennedy has been cold at the plate all spring. Meanwhile, Clemens just keeps plugging along, hitting north of .300 with sneaky pop and positional versatility. The writing’s on the wall, and Saturday’s ninth inning didn’t help Kennedy’s case.

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Not All Fun and Games

The Yankees did threaten in the bottom half, putting two men on to start the inning, but the Phillies’ arms shut the door to preserve the comeback win.

Sure, none of this matters in the grand scheme — it won’t count in the standings, and the roster battles weren’t decided by this one inning — but this was one of those classic Spring Training reminders: the kids are hungry, and anything can happen in baseball.

The 2025 Phillies don’t need moral victories — they’re built to contend. But it’s still nice to see the young guys flash some life and claw their way out of a blowout with pride. If nothing else, it made for a hell of a Saturday afternoon.

Now back to our regularly scheduled over-analyzing of the fifth starter spot.

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