Shortly after the Phillies’ 6-4 comeback victory over the San Francisco Giants Monday evening, Bryce Harper was talking with media members about the importance of the win. It was the Phillies’ first win to open a series in San Francisco since 2014. As Harper reflected with them on that, he quipped a joke and cracked a smile. The serious demeanor that Bryce Harper has adopted for much of the past year seemed to slip away as the cornerstone first baseman had a laugh.
Harper played a pivotal role in the win for the Phillies, matching the Giants in run production. He went 3-for-4 with two doubles on the night, scoring one run and recording three RBI.
Not every painting is Picasso. Andrew Painter’s second major league outing was a rocky one. After allowing one baserunner in each of the first two frames, Painter got into trouble in the third inning. Willy Adames started the inning with a double into left field before moving up to third on a single from Luis Arraez. Matt Chapman then drove a triple into center field, just past the arms of a sprinting Justin Crawford, scoring two. Two batters later, Helliot Ramos slung a single into shallow center field, scoring Chapman.
The Giants added another run in the fourth inning as a pair of grounders found their way through the infield, putting runners on first and third with one out. Adames then walked to load the bases. Arraez then slung a fly ball to the warning track in right field. Adolis García came down with the catch as former Phillies outfielder Harrison Bader tagged up for the Giants’ fourth run.
Following the fourth inning, manager Rob Thomson went to the bullpen. Painter’s day concluded having allowed four earned runs in 4.0 innings, allowing nine hits and one walk on the day. With a similar pitch count (90) to his major league debut (84), Painter was much more reliant on the fastball, throwing 20 more sinkers and 14 less curveballs. The Giants had better contact against the pitch selection Painter utilized, recording eight hard hits versus the Nationals’ one on March 31.
The Phillies bats began to wake up in the fifth inning. J.T. Realmuto led off the inning with a single into center field. Justin Crawford followed him up with a double into left field, putting two runners in scoring position for Trea Turner. Turner slung a grounder up the middle directly to Arraez, who was shaded over to cover the middle. Turner could not beat the throw but notched an RBI as Realmuto scored and Crawford advanced to third.
After a Kyle Schwarber walk, Bryce Harper drove a double off of the wall in right field, scoring Crawford. The double was hit too sharply to score Schwarber from first and the Phillies would fail to advance the pair further but cut the deficit down to 4-2.
Two innings later, Crawford and Turner hit back-to-back singles to lead off the inning. Schwarber then worked a four-pitch walk, aided by a successful ABS challenge on ball four, to load the bases. With the bases juiced, Harper tied the game up on a single into right field.
The roommates then took care of business to take the lead for the Phillies as Alec Bohm doubled to score Schwarber. Three batters later, Brandon Marsh hit a sacrifice fly into left field, scoring Harper to give the Phillies their 6-4 lead.
Overall, Harper went 3-for-4 on the day while Bohm, Realmuto, and Crawford each notched two hits respectively. Crawford scored two runs while Turner and Marsh each recorded an RBI as well.
After Painter struggled against the Giants, the Phillies’ bullpen picked him up, shutting down the West Coast offense. Tim Mayza, Jonathan Bowlan, Jose Alvarado, Brad Keller, and Jhoan Duran each pitched a shutout inning. Overall, the Phillies’ bullpen recorded six strikeouts, allowing two hits and no walks.
Bowlan received the win as the pitcher on record as the Phillies took the lead in the seventh while Alvarado and Keller each recorded holds. Duran then entered for the bottom of the ninth, allowing one hit on his way to his fourth save of the season.
Speaking of the bullpen, it was announced after the game that Phillies right-hander Orion Kerkering will be activated from the Injured List prior to Tuesday’s game. Left-handed pitcher Kyle Backhus will be optioned in the corresponding move.
The Phillies will look to earn their first series win in San Francisco since 2013 tonight as Cristopher Sánchez takes the mound. The contest is scheduled for a 9:35 p.m. start time.
