PHILADELPHIA -- Don Mattingly is right.
Most of the time, people don’t notice the little things in baseball games. They focus on the big hit, the big pitch or the big out because those things stand out. But the little things mattered in Tuesday night’s 6-5 loss to the Astros at Citizens Bank Park.
“It can cost you a game,” the Phillies' interim manager said.
A couple of baserunning mistakes on Tuesday could cost the Phillies more in a few weeks. They have 17 games to play in the regular season. They are four games behind the Braves in the National League East. They are a half-game ahead of the Cubs for the top NL Wild Card spot. The Phils could have gained a game on the Braves with a victory on Tuesday. They could have extended their lead over Chicago.
But they slammed that door shut.
First, Phillies rookie Andrew Painter allowed five runs in five innings to put the Phils into a 5-0 hole. It happens. 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, including the best start of his career last Wednesday, when he allowed two hits in seven scoreless innings in Arizona.
But the Phillies clawed back.
Trea Turner hit a two-run home run to left field in the sixth inning to make it 5-3. It was Turner’s first homer since Aug. 8.
The Phillies had runners on first and second with no outs in the seventh, when Brandon Marsh smashed a pitch toward Monty’s Angle in center field.
It looked like Astros center fielder Daulton Varsho, who grew up roaming the Bank’s outfield as a kid while his father Gary coached here from 2002-06, might catch it. 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 his third since Aug. 7.
J.T. Realmuto lined out to Jeremy Peña in the next at-bat, but Marsh broke toward third on contact. By the time he realized what happened, Peña had an easy throw to second for a double play.
“With no outs, it's unacceptable for me to take a step towards third,” Marsh said. “It's a huge mistake by me. Really no excuse. Just a really bad play on my part.”
Mattingly said Marsh got away from basic baserunning principles there.
“Your principles say freeze,” he said. “I was taught to freeze. A lot of organizations teach [you to go] back on that play. Just thinking too aggressively, you know? Thinking that's going to get through and he's going to score and we're going to tie it up and all that. But basically, your principles say you should freeze or go back.”
Stott hit a leadoff single in the ninth, and pinch-hitter Edmundo Sosa crushed a ball to right-center field. Sosa must’ve thought he hit a game-tying homer because he didn’t run hard out of the box.
But the ball hit off the top of the wall and bounced back toward center field.
Sosa only reached second.
“I was watching the ball, so I didn't see if he was going full speed all the way,” Mattingly said. “I was a little surprised when I looked up where he was at, because usually [when] the ball comes off that far, you're thinking three there. The ball’s up in the air a little bit, too. So, again, I didn't see it. But I was wondering why he really wasn't as far as he should have been.”
Realmuto flied out to center field, 264 feet from home plate for the first out. Derek Hill flied out to right, 276 feet from home plate.
Sosa could’ve scored on one of those balls. The Phillies scored five times on sacrifice flies hit 276 feet or closer to home plate this year. Sosa scored on a sac fly 248 feet from home plate in 2023.
“You can always look at one thing like that where you would have scored, could have scored," Mattingly said. "But I think just in general, when you talk about the way you should play and the things you should do on the field, that’s really more important than whether you could score it or should you score on the next play.”