PHILADELPHIA -- Brandon Marsh smashed a pitch toward Monty’s Angle in center field.
It surprised a few people.
It looked like Astros center fielder Daulton Varsho, who grew up roaming the Bank’s green grass as a kid while his father Gary coached here from 2002-06, might catch the seventh-inning fly ball in Tuesday night’s 6-5 loss to Houston at Citizens Bank Park. Alec Bohm, who was on second base, broke back toward second, only to see the ball hit the wall and ricochet to right field. Bryson Stott nearly passed Bohm on the bases.
In the end, a run scored and Marsh had a double.
It was Marsh’s first extra-base hit since Aug. 21, and only his third since Aug. 7. It has been a struggle for him for some time. Marsh batted .319 with 15 home runs, 46 RBIs and an .881 OPS through July 1, earning a spot in the starting lineup for the NL All-Star team.
He had hit .179 with two homers, 11 RBIs and a .478 OPS since.
Marsh’s knock followed Trea Turner's two-run home run to left field in the sixth inning. It was Turner’s first homer since Aug. 8.
He had hit .184 with five RBIs and a .511 OPS since his last homer.
It would be nice to get both going with 17 games remaining in the regular season and Philadelphia trying to clinch a fifth consecutive trip to the postseason. The Phillies could maintain a half-game lead over the Cubs for the top National League Wild Card spot, if Chicago loses to Milwaukee on Tuesday.
Nobody knows what will happen to the Phillies in the playoffs, regardless of what happens to Marsh and Turner, but they are a team that nobody wants to face because of its starting pitching.
It starts with Jesús Luzardo, Cristopher Sánchez and Zack Wheeler, of course. Aaron Nola has been solid for weeks. Andrew Painter has pitched well, although he struggled on Tuesday. He allowed 10 hits, five runs, two walks and two home runs, striking out six in five innings in the 20th start of his big league career. He allowed a three-run home run to Norristown’s Christian Walker in the second inning to make it 3-0. He allowed a solo homer to Cam Smith in the fourth to make it 5-0.
Painter entered the night with a 3.12 ERA in seven starts since his return from Triple-A Lehigh Valley on July 31. He had a 1.80 ERA in his last three outings, including the best start of his career last Wednesday, when he allowed two hits in seven scoreless innings in a 1-0 loss in Arizona.
He has pitched so well that baseball people have wondered how he might fit into the team’s postseason plans. Could he start a game? Could he be the Phillies’ late-inning bridge to closer Jhoan Duran, especially if questions and concerns about the bullpen persist?
These are questions that weren’t plausible a couple months ago.