Phillies use long ball to eliminate Braves, return to NLCS

A day after brutalizing the Atlanta Braves with six house runs, the Philadelphia Phillies used the lengthy ball to take Recreation 4, 3-1, punching a return ticket to the Nationwide League Championship Sequence. 

All three Phillies runs got here by house run. Slugging outfielder Nick Castellanos led the way in which, repeating his feat from Recreation 3. Castellanos went deep twice within the fourth and sixth innings, turning into the primary participant in main league historical past to hit two HRs in back-to-back postseason video games. In the meantime, shortstop Trea Turner additionally went yard for the second time this postseason. 

Six completely different pitchers took the mound for the Phillies. Ranger Suarez began the sport, permitting just one earned run off three hits by means of 5 strong innings of labor. Seranthony Dominguez and Jose Alvarado acquired the Phillies by means of the sixth earlier than the bullpen bumped into hassle. 

Within the seventh inning, the Braves had the bases juiced with two outs, however Phillies middle fielder Johan Rojas made the play of the evening whereas bailing out reliever Craig Kimbrel in opposition to the harmful Ronald Acuna Jr. The potential NL MVP drove a pitch deep into the left-center subject hole, however Rojas was in a position to run it down, making a leaping, presumably game-saving catch. 

The tense moments weren’t over for the Phillies bullpen. Nonetheless up 3-1 within the ninth, Gregory Soto allowed the primary two Braves to succeed in base, strolling Marcell Ozuna earlier than giving up a single to Sean Murphy, to place runners on first and third with no outs. However, Matt Strahm got here in reduction and closed the door, forcing Kevin Pillar and Eddie Rosario to come out earlier than placing out Vaughn Grissom to finish the risk and the Braves season.