WASHINGTON – Trailing by two with the bases empty and down to their final strike, the Phillies staged an improbable two-out ninth-inning rally at Nationals Park on Tuesday.
What began innocently enough with a Trea Turner single then saw Brandon Marsh deliver a game-tying two-run homer off Nationals reliever Brad Lord. Three batters later, Bryson Stott crushed a three-run homer and three batters after that Edmundo Sosa came through with a two-run double.
The Phillies ultimately scored eight times on eight consecutive hits, en route to a 14-9 win to even the series.
The Phillies initially erased a 5-0 deficit with J.T. Realmuto delivering a two-out bases-clearing double in the top of the eighth off Nationals reliever Clayton Beeter to give the Phillies a 6-5 lead. Nationals outfielder James Wood had a piece of Realmuto’s liner to shallow right, but the ball squeezed out, allowing the Phillies to go in front.
The Nationals responded in the last of the eighth with Jorbit Vivas hitting a three-run homer off Phillies reliever Orion Kerkering to give Washington an 8-6 lead, setting the stage for the Phillies’ ninth-inning comeback.
Designated hitter Kyle Schwarber wasn’t a part of the outburst after he was a late scratch with lower back tightness.
Sosa took his spot in the lineup and made the most of the opportunity, going 2-for-5 with a two-run homer and five RBIs.
Jesús Luzardo matched a career-high 13 strikeouts and didn’t allow an extra-base hit across 6 2/3 innings.