PHILADELPHIA -- With every trot he takes around the bases, Max Muncy etches himself deeper into the lore of a franchise that traces its existence back to the 19th century.
Muncy continued his climb up the Dodgers' leaderboard with his 19th home run of the season, a two-run blast that was the difference-maker on Tuesday night at Citizens Bank Park. He later helped seal the rain-soaked 2-1 win by starting a wild rundown that turned into a game-ending double play, capitalizing on multiple baserunning blunders to thwart the Phillies' late threat.
The home run was Muncy's 228th as a Dodger, moving him into a tie with Ron Cey for the fifth most in franchise history. The four Dodgers ahead of Muncy and Cey are Duke Snider (389), Gil Hodges (361), Eric Karros (270) and Roy Campanella (242).
"I always say, any time you're on any type of leaderboard when it comes to this organization, you've done something right," Muncy said. "So for me, that means a lot."
With Justin Wrobleski opposing the Phillies' Zack Wheeler on the mound, there was never going to be a downpour of offense to match the precipitation that delayed first pitch by one hour and 20 minutes, then continued to fall steadily throughout the contest. While Wrobleski allowed a first-inning run, he narrowly outdueled Wheeler in his return to the mound where he had made his All-Star Game debut just one week prior.
Wheeler has been one of the best pitchers in baseball this season, but the Dodgers were able to get the better of him in both of their regular-season meetings. On May 29 at Dodger Stadium, they tagged him for a season-high-tying four runs on the power of four solo homers, one of them hit by Muncy.
On Tuesday, Wheeler was much stingier, striking out nine across seven innings. But in the fourth inning, with Andy Pages on first base, Wheeler caught a little too much plate with a first-pitch cutter to Muncy. Muncy drove it a Statcast-projected 421 feet out to straightaway center at 102.4 mph off the bat, putting the Dodgers in front and himself a step higher in the record books.
"Wheeler was really, really good," Muncy said. "He releases the ball about 3 feet from the catcher, and really elite command. So just to get anything off him, that put us in a really good spot. And with us having Wrobleski on the mound, we knew it was going to go pretty well."
One big hit was all the Dodgers needed on a night when Wrobleski was dealing, striking out seven across 6 1/3 innings. But it got hairy in the bottom of the ninth, when the Phillies put a pair of runners in scoring position with one out against Tanner Scott, who was going for a five-out save.
Scott got Brandon Marsh to hit a grounder toward Muncy at third. The runner at third base, Justin Crawford, broke for home and got caught in between. J.T. Realmuto was at third by then, but when Crawford retreated toward the bag, Realmuto sprinted back to second base. Both runners were out, and the Dodgers escaped the jam to even the series.
"'Oh poop.' That was my reaction," Scott said. "I mean, it was just crazy. Two great plays.”
For Muncy, who had a hand in two game-changing moments, the final play stood out the most, evoking memories of the wheel play that ended Game 2 of last year's National League Division Series.
"The defensive play to me means more than the homer," Muncy said. "Obviously, I know the homer gives us the lead. But for me, the work I've been putting in on defense, any time I can make an impact on defense, those are always way more important to me. I just want to keep growing over there and keep getting better."
Muncy's time with the Dodgers began after he was released by the A's in 2017. Since then, he has not only become the organization's longest-tenured player, he has established himself as one of the franchise's most prolific sluggers.
With every big moment, Muncy adds to the unlikely legacy he has crafted during his time in Dodger Blue.
"I’ve been with him longer than anyone on this roster," manager Dave Roberts said. "I’ve watched every single one of his at-bats. I’ve had a lot of conversations with him. He’s one of the leaders on this ballclub. He’s won three championships with me. So he’s going to go down in Dodger lore."