Phillies’ Duran gives up late homer to Braves in wild card game 1 – NBC Sports Philadelphia

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ATLANTA – All along, you feared the bullpen would be the Phillies’ weakness in the postseason.

But this guy?

Jhoan Duran?

No way.

Yes way.

Duran, pitching in his second inning of work, allowed a three-run home run to Austin Riley with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning as the Atlanta Braves came back from a one-run deficit to beat the Phils, 5-3, in Game 1 of the National League Wild Card Series at Truist Park on Tuesday afternoon.

Game 2 is Wednesday afternoon. If the Phillies lose, the latest edition of Red October will be over before October even officially arrives.

Cristopher Sanchez will be on the mound for the must-win game. Since 2022, the team winning Game 1 of the best-of-three Wild Card Series has gone on to win it 15 of 16 times.

The Phils were four outs from victory before Riley hit a first-pitch fastball out to right. Duran got the first two outs of the inning before giving up an infield hit to Michael Harris III and hitting Ozzie Albies in the foot with a pitch.

It was a quick and shocking unraveling for Duran, an All-Star who converted 33 of 35 save chances during the regular season. But it was not altogether unfamiliar for the Phillies. Three years in a row now, their bullpen has blown a late lead in Game 1 of the postseason. The Phils were eliminated in their first round of play the last two years.

“That’s a dagger,” Bryce Harper said afterward in the quiet of the losing clubhouse. “Obviously, you have the lead going into the eighth and the best closer in the game on the bump. Riley just got to it. We have to flush it as quickly as possible and come back tomorrow.”

Duran’s blown save was the sixth by the Phillies’ bullpen in the last three postseasons.

“It’s hard to see something like that,” Duran said. “I missed with the pitch and I paid the price.”

The Phillies got five innings of one-run ball from Jesus Luzardo. It was a gutsy effort from the left-hander, who had not started in 22 days after a bout of shoulder tendinitis. He threw 77 pitches and left with the game tied, 1-1.

“I was not comfortable sending him out for the sixth,” manager Don Mattingly said. “He gave us more than I thought he would, honestly. He was great today.”

Alex McFarlane allowed a run in the bottom of the sixth as the Braves took a 2-1 lead.

But the Phillies came back in the top of the seventh when J.T. Realmuto, coming off a final month in which he hit .113, stroked a two-run triple to right after the Phils chased Chris Sale from the game. Realmuto’s two-out hit gave the Phils a 3-2 lead.

Mattingly wasn’t taking any chances with the lead. With a leaky bullpen and only a few arms in his circle of trust, he went to Duran, in the bottom of the inning.

“It was something we had talked about,” Mattingly said. “If we had a lead, he was going to get the seventh and the eighth. He made the seventh inning look easy.”

Duran was on his way to making the eighth look easy, too. He got Matt Olson for the first out on a liner back to the box. He retired Mauricio Dubon on a fly ball to right for the second out.

Then the ol’ Shinola hit the fan.

Harris legged out an infield that Trea Turner tried to make a play on, but couldn’t.

“Out of the box, I thought he was safe,” said Harper, who moved from right field to first base in the late innings. “Harris can fly. I don’t know if any shortstop in the game makes that play with Harris coming down the line.”

Duran started to wobble after Harris’ infield hit. Behind the plate, Realmuto said he sensed Duran was getting tired. The pitcher went to a full-count before hitting Albies on the foot with a curveball. It was the 24th pitch Duran threw. Riley hit his 25th pitch – a 99.9 mph fastball — over the wall in right. Realmuto wanted the pitch up and away. Duran missed middle-in.

“I think he was starting to get a little tired,” Realmuto said. “Most pitchers, when they get tired their command goes.”

Mattingly wouldn’t reveal his plan for the ninth inning. As it turned out, it didn’t matter.

“Any time you lose a game late, it’s obviously frustrating,” he said. “But in our mind, we wanted our best guy out there. You live with this one.”

Realmuto has lived with too many bullpen meltdowns the last few years – and now three in a row in the first game of a series.

“That’s tough,” he said. “There’s no secret we’ve had our share of blown leads, not just in Game 1s, but throughout the postseason. It’s something we need to get better at. We have the guys to do it. We just need to lock in and make better pitches.”

For Realmuto, this Game 1 loss may have been even more difficult than others. After hitting just .205 this season, he had the big hit that gave the Phillies the lead they wanted in the late innings.

“Obviously, the triple was fun and exciting,” he said. “And not too many batters later, giving up the lead, that wasn’t fun. That’s the postseason, though. It’s such a roller coaster. That’s why we love this game so much, for the emotions that come with it. Today just didn’t work out in our favor.”

And now, it’s win Wednesday.

Or go home.