The Philadelphia Phillies earned a split of a day-night doubleheader after beating the New York Mets 4-1 on Saturday. Bailey Falter threw six innings of a two-hit ball while Kyle Schwarber tripled and doubled at Citizens Bank Park.
Following this win, the Phillies came back in the nightcap to top the Mets who lead the NL East table for the fifth time in 18 games this year. Phillies, who hold the second spot in the wild-card race, lost 90-54 to the Mets en route to Sunday’s series finale.
In the first game of the series, the Citi Field-based team beat Phillies 8-2, adding a record of 13-5 to the Phillies this year.
Falter allowed one run in his first major league start since July 29. After a sloppy first inning where he walked two, hit a batter, and allowed Francisco Lindor to score on a wild pitch, he retired 16 of the next 18 hitters.
After the game, he said that Phillies pitching coach Calem Cotham has a key role in this success with telling him what to do after his first inning.
“I came down here and was a little heated after that inning,” Falter said. “Caleb (Cotham, the Phillies pitching coach) came in and calmed me down. He said for me to lock it down after that.”
Falter just returned from the Triple-A side last month. He’s been stellar through seven starts in Triple-A, posting a 1.56 ERA/2.46 FIP over 34 2/3 innings.
The Phillies’ third baseman Alec Bohm said that he was happy with the result. He hit a two-run double that just touched the outer edge of the left-field chalk line off David Peterson in the third.
“Over the last few days, we were not able to get the big hit,” Bohm said. “We were able to get that big hit tonight.”
Losing momentum
Following the result, the Mets manager Buck Showalter said that his team could not maintain their momentum after winning the first game. He admitted that the Phillies made things difficult in the second game, especially with their bullpen.
“We had a good first game,” Showalter said. “We just couldn’t string much together (in the second game). They have some good guys in the bullpen and we knew it was going to be a challenge after that.”
The Mets’ shortstop, Francisco Lindor said that he was surprised by the Phillies’ comeback after losing the first game. He also said that the Mets failed to anticipate the game earlier, leading to his team’s lost.
“His ball was getting on us,” Lindor said. “It seemed like his fastball had a little bit more on it than we expected. It had more ride on it. We didn’t make the adjustment quick enough.
“Your goal is to try to win both of them,” he said, referring to the games in the doubleheader. “But if you can at least get one it’s a good day.”
The Phillies are now sitting third at the NL East table while the Mets still top the table. The two teams are separated by the Atlanta Braves who sit second.