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All Hands On Deck Once Again For Phillies

The Phillies are one loss away from seeing their season come to an ultimate end. How will Philadelphia answer? - Image Credit: Bill Menzel/Latino Sports

FLUSHING, NY — Sounds familiar to the Phillies about a must win game or their season concludes in the postseason. A Phillies team Tuesday evening at Citi Field that faced the reality of being eliminated from the NLDS after the Mets took a 2-1 best-of-five series advantage with a 7-2 win.

However this is a Phillies team that claims to be resilient, and perhaps they are. The Mets are riding momentum and continue to get consistent swings at the plate and pitching almost to perfection which makes the Phillies task more difficult.

Jesse Winker blasts a solo-homer in Game 3 of the NLDS on Tuesday night at Citi Field – Image Credit: Bill Menzel/Latino Sports

A Mets team that continues to be the story during their magical ride of September and four wins off a NL Wild Card series against the Brewers. Now the Phillies appear to be their next victim, the Mets have an opportunity to clinch the series Wednesday evening at Citi Field advancing to their first NLCS since 2015.

And to Phillies manager Rob Thomson it’s about his resilient team. He alluded to their attitude that placed them in a bad position.

“Basically it’s just very simple,” he said. “You come here tomorrow and I told them it’s the most resilient club I’ve ever been around. That’s what they’re all about. They’re all about toughness and fighting and playing together. That’s what we need to do, and just focus on one game.”

The No. 2 seeded Phillies are on the brink – Image Credit: Bill Menzel/Latino Sports

One game at a time and a similar attitude that Mets manager Carlos Mendoza has been preaching to his team during their magical run as the lowest seed out of the NL Wild Card field.

Regardless, the Phillies know what is a stake here. They will attempt to force a decisive Friday Game 5 and return to finish the job in front of their fans at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. However, that resilience can only go so far when timely hitting fails to score runs.

Thomson also said it will be all hands on deck Wednesday, alluding that his entire pitching staff would be available if needed to stave off elimination. He mentioned using Game 1 starter Zack Wheeler coming out of the bullpen, who could be slated to start a decisive series clinching ballgame.

Zack Wheeler was dominant in Game 1 of the NLDS last Saturday at Citizens Bank Park – Image Credit: Bill Menzel/Latino Sports

Also, the Phillies need more punch from their lineup. Bryce Harper and Nick Castellanos had RBI singles in the eighth inning which made things interesting, though the Mets still had a hold on their lead. Mets reliever Ryan Stanek retired Alec Bohm ending the inning.

It is Harper and Castellanos that can do damage, though Bohm continues to struggle during the three games of this series. The Phillies need those three to get on base and produce, a recipe that propelled them to a best record in the National League.

Bryce Harper and the Phillies look to get back to Philadelphia for a Game 5 win or go home – Image Credit: Bill Menzel/Latino Sports

Harper had difficulty handling the sweeper of Mets’ starter Sean Manaea, though with a history of struggling at Citi Field with a .591 OPS since joining the Phillies in 2019. Castellanos lined into an inning ending double play that stopped a threat in the sixth with two runners on and trailing 2-0.

Situations the Phillies have gone well for the Phillies went wrong. They know as a team what transpired, though credit Manaea who won his first postseason game and was clicking on all cylinders and had the defense behind him in the outfield and infield.

It’s not the Phillies way and in their quiet clubhouse they are aware, a task to take this series to a decisive game. Disappointment again is not their agenda, realizing of course the Mets continued their momentum and have become a 2024 headline with the Detroit Tigers.

Sean Manaea recorded seven shutout innings against the Phillies in Game 3 of the NLDS on Tuesday night at Citi Field – Image Credit: Bill Menzel/Latino Sports

”Sometimes it’s the fact that guys are throwing strikes and you need to get good pitches that you want and be using all the diamond,” Thomson said. “That’s what we always talk about. Again, not try to do too much.”

But the Phillies have to do much. And if they don’t, the inevitable failure of another postseason will haunt them all winter.

Rich Mancuso is a senior writer and contributor at LatinoSports.com – X (Twitter): @Ring786, Facebook.com/Rich Mancuso

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