Giants capitalize late, Phillies fall flat in 3-1 loss in the Bay

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. The bats went cold and the bullpen blinked. That was the story Monday night as the Phillies dropped the opener of their West Coast trip, falling 3-1 to the Giants at Oracle Park.

Tied 1-1 heading into the bottom of the eighth, reliever Orion Kerkering got himself into trouble fast, hitting Willy Adames to open the inning, then watching Matt Chapman punch a single to put runners on the corners.

After plunking Wilmer Flores to load the bases, Casey Schmitt drove in the go-ahead run on a grounder before Chapman scored moments later on a headfirst dive to make it 3-1.

That was all San Francisco needed.

The Phillies managed just six hits, and only one extra-base knock courtesy of a leadoff double by Bryson Stott in the fifth, which led to Philly’s lone run thanks to a wild pitch by Giants starter Landen Roupp.

Philly’s best shot came earlier in that same inning. After tying the game, they had the go-ahead run on first with one out and Kyle Schwarber smoked a liner to right only for Luis Matos to lay out and rob him.

Moments later, Bryce Harper got rung up on a borderline pitch to kill the threat.

That was it. The offense never recovered.

Phillies Game Notes:

Cristopher Sánchez: 6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
Solid again. Didn’t deserve the no-decision.
Orion Kerkering: Hit two batters, gave up the go-ahead run in the 8th.
Adames: 8-game hitting streak after a double in the fifth.
Camilo Doval: Nailed down his 14th save, including a 13-pitch war with J.T. Realmuto and a game-ending 3-6 double play.

Up Next for the Phillies

Taijuan Walker (3-5, 3.64 ERA) gets the ball Tuesday against Robbie Ray (9-3, 2.68 ERA) as the Phillies try to even the series.

Still, for a team that had scored 29 runs in its previous four games, the flatline on Monday night was a gut punch. This one was winnable—and they let it slip.