I can admit that this Phillies team is better than the one that went all the way last year. But I still didn't call our pitching silencing the lineup that fried the Dodgers last week. Because that means...that means the Phillies have a better pitching staff than the Dodgers this year. That's hard to wrap one's head around. How did all of our guys, including Wheeler and Walker, stay healthy while all of theirs got hurt almost immediately?
The Diamondbacks made quick work of the Dodgers' pitching because they didn't have much left. Then they get to Philly and can't do anything against Aaron Nola, who struggled more often than he flourished this season. I am absolutely living for Nola's October redemption arc, even if it means some team is really gonna overpay for him in free agency [and seeing that Andrew Painter will likely be healthy next year, it probably won't be us].
But Nola only kept the lights on. The hitting ran the friggin restaurant. And you can chalk it up to the home runs if you'd like, such as Schwarber's double-HR night that's always welcome or Turner's scorcher, but this game was still in danger of being flipped for a lot of its middle section. It's the RBI doubles that made up the 6th and 7th innings, Realmuto, Bohm and Marsh, that impressed me the most because it proved we don't have to completely rely on 1-run homers to power wins. Pure contact hitting can do the trick, and all of those guys had ferocious liners to where D-Backs fielders were not. This was also a pretty atrocious defensive game for the D-Backs, and a lot of them just weren't prepared for how fast the balls were coming. Though, honestly, Jake Cave trying to leg out a triple and failing is his own damn fault.
The easy part is over for now. Now we have to win on the road. There's a few factors that could make this interesting. Game 3 is going to Brandon Pfaadt, who, like Nola, struggled during the regular season but has come alive during the postseason. Even if we've made quick work of Gallen and Kelly, he could provide some difficulty for us. The other factor? Phillies fans keep talking about how cheap the tickets at Chase Field are, even during the postseason. Spirit Airlines might get a ton of business in the next few days, and we may get some Lions-at-Lambeau style crowds. Now...on one hand, this is a terrible way for a team to have to jack up prices, as honestly all tickets should be that affordable. But Phillies fans will exploit any formality or norm just because they can.
The Phillies are looking real good about now. And it may not exactly be a clean finish if they do take the series.
Tonight, the Arlington crowds want a win on their turf. Let's see if it happens.
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