Photo credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea, USA Today Sports.
Matt Strahm versus Shohei Ohtani is becoming a great baseball theater. Tuck that one away because there’s a good chance we will see it again in October.
The Phillies defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 Tuesday night behind a strong pitching performance by Cristopher Sanchez and an offense that was clicking to the tune of six players posting multi-hit games as the team amassed 14 hits off Dodgers pitching.
But the game hinged on one matchup – Strahm vs. Ohtani. For the third time in the last four games between the two teams, Phillies manager Rob Thomson has called on Strahm to get the presumptive N.L. MVP in a key spot.
Back on July 10, it was in the top of the seventh, with two men on base and the Phillies protecting a two-run lead. Strahm struck him out. The next night, the Phillies were up by four, so it wasn’t as high leverage, but with a runner on and Ohtani’s power, the game could have gotten uncomfortable. It didn’t, as Strahm got Ohtani to ground out to second.
The Phillies were rolling back then. Almost a month later, they’re trying to find themselves again. And while they are trying to grind through it, the Phillies found themselves in a familiar spot – with a lead over the Dodgers late in a game, with traffic on the basepaths and the prospects of Ohtani coming to the plate looming.
So, up by three runs in the seventh inning, with two runners on base, Thomson turned to Strahm. He got the two guys at the bottom of the Los Angeles lineup – Nick Ahmed and Austin Barnes, setting up the showdown with Ohtani.
When Strahm struck out Ohtani last month, he got him fishing for his slider, making Ohtani look a little foolish as his helmet nearly came off on the swing. This time, it was a matter of determining when to drop that slider on him.
Ohtani worked a full count – on four fastballs and a surprise cutter – a pitch Strahm doesn’t normally throw to lefties but got Ohtani to swing through – when Strahm finally decided to pull the slider out of the bag. Ohtani made contact this time, but not good enough contact. He flew out to right field. Strahm had won the battle for the third time in as many tries – something few pitchers can say about facing Ohtani.
“I like it,” said Thomson about matching up Strahm against Ohtani. “He’s a great hitter, so you have to give him credit. Strahm, fortunately, has pitched him well.”
It was a key spot in what turned out to be a key win for the Phillies. Not only did they win twice in a three-game span for the first time in two weeks, but they locked up the season series against the Dodgers, meaning if the teams finish tied for the best record in the National League, the Phillies would win home field advantage via the head-to-head tiebreaker. With the win, they moved 1 ½ games ahead of Los Angeles for the best record in the National League, and coupled with a loss by Atlanta, built their lead in the N.L. East back to 6½ games.
Sanchez (8-7) pitched his best game since his complete game shutout at the end of June. He pitched six innings allowing just one earned run on five hits and one walk. Edmundo Sosa, getting a start against lefty Clayton Kershaw (0-2) in place of Bryson Stott, had a key two-run single to grow the lead to 4-1 in the sixth, and later added a solo homer in the ninth. Kyle Schwarber also homered off the right field foul pole and had an RBI single.
“We’ve been going through a tough time, but the attitude has stayed positive and seeing how hard everyone works on a daily basis – I wish everyone could see that,” Schwarber said. “It’s such a good clubhouse and they all go about their work in a professional way and when a guy gets their name called, they’re going to be ready to go – and you can see that with what Sosa did tonight.”
ON DECK
The Phillies will look for their first series win since sweeping the Dodgers last month when they send Tyler Phillips (3-1, 4.39 ERA) to the mound tonight to square off against Los Angeles’ RHP Gavin Stone (9-5, 3.63).
