Game: Arizona Diamondbacks @ Philadelphia Phillies
Time: 8:07 p.m.
Odds: Diamondbacks +147, Phillies -160
Total: 7.5
When up against Zack Wheeler and the Philadelphia Phillies bullpen on Monday night, the Arizona Diamondbacks were unable to complete their late-inning comeback. Even so, the Diamondbacks are hoping that their 5-3 loss will result in the kind of momentum boost that evaded the Atlanta Braves last week against the Phillies. Arizona will try to even the series tonight in Philadelphia where the Phillies have won all five of their playoff games this season.
In a matchup of right-handed pitchers, Merrill Kelly (1-0, 0.00 ERA this postseason) will take the mound for the Diamondbacks against Philadelphia’s Aaron Nola (2-0, 1.42). The last time Kelly pitched was in Game 1 of the National League Division Series on October 7, when the Diamondbacks defeated the Dodgers 11-2. In his three career starts against the Phillies, Kelly is 1-0 with a 2.75 ERA.
Nola pitched last Wednesday Game 3 of the NLDS against Atlanta. Nola pitched 5.1 innings and gave up just two runs as the Phillies prevailed 10-2. In seven postseason starts, Nola has a 4-2 record and a 3.76 ERA. In his five career starts against the Diamondbacks, Nola is 2-2 with a 7.67 ERA.
The Phillies held off several late rallies by the Diamondbacks to earn last night’s victory. On the first pitch of the home half of the first inning, Kyle Schwarber homered for Philadelphia. Two batters later, Bryce Harper, who was celebrating his 31st birthday, did the same. The Phillies increased what eventually became a 5-0 lead in the fifth inning with the help of another long ball by Nick Castellanos, his fifth homer in three games.
Wheeler’s postseason WHIP, which he reduced to 0.70 in nine starts, was the lowest over any nine-start span in postseason history for any pitcher. He allowed just two runs on three hits and no walks over six innings.
The tying run was brought to the plate in each of the final three innings for Arizona. The DBacks scored on a two-run home run from Geraldo Perdomo in the sixth and a sacrifice fly from Alek Thomas in the seventh, but they could not plate the tying runs.
For the Diamondbacks, it was their first postseason loss. Arizona swept both the best-of-five NLDS against the Los Angeles Dodgers and the best-of-three wild-card series against the Milwaukee Brewers to advance to the postseason as the NL’s final wild-card team at 84-78.
On October 9, Wheeler pitched a no-hitter into the sixth inning of Game 2 of the NLDS. The Braves won 5-4 after coming back from a four-run deficit. The game’s final out saw Michael Harris II deny Castellanos a game-tying RBI extra-base hit before doubling Harper off first base. Philadelphia then won the final two games of the NLDS in Philadelphia by defeating the Braves by a combined 13-3.
The Phillies are 7-1 SU in their last eight games and 5-0 in their last five at home. Arizona has won five of its last six games and four of its last five on the road.
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