Phillies fans were riding high for roughly 24 hours after their beloved hometown team delivered a masterclass performance in Game 3 of the NLDS against the Dodgers on Wednesday night in Los Angeles.
Facing a do-or-die situation, Philadelphia’s offense erupted for eight runs on twelve hits, led by NL MVP candidate Kyle Schwarber, who launched two home runs, including a towering 455-foot blast that cleared the right-field pavilion at Dodger Stadium. According to the Associated Press, Schwarber became just the second player ever to hit a ball over the pavilion, joining former Pittsburgh Pirate legend Willie Stargell who accomplished the feat in 1969 and 1973.
Schwarber’s two home runs on the evening brought his postseason total to 23, ranking third all-time and the most ever by a left-handed hitter.
Catcher J.T. Realmuto also went deep for Philadelphia, one of two hits he tallied on the night. Bryce Harper and Alec Bohm each contributed a pair of hits, while Trea Turner added three of his own. It was another strong showing from a Phillies lineup that has routinely displayed power and consistency over the course of the season.
On the mound, starter Aaron Nola set the tone early, pitching two scoreless innings and striking out three before turning things over to impending free agent Ranger Suárez. The left-hander delivered a steady performance, allowing one run on five hits across five innings while striking out four to earn the win.
In all, the Phillies’ pitching staff held the Dodgers lineup to just two runs on eight hits.
The final score read 8–2, as momentum swung back in Philadelphia’s favor heading into another win-or-go-home Game 4 at Dodger Stadium.
However, as any former player or diehard baseball fan will tell you, you can be on top of the world one moment and humbled the next. Baseball is just like that, a true rollercoaster of emotion. And while Phillies fans had plenty to celebrate after Game 3, about 24 hours later their joy turned to heartbreak in Game 4, as they watched their beloved team, a 96-win powerhouse with the second-best record in the majors during the regular season, see its season come to an abrupt end.
Most of Game 4 on Thursday evening turned into an old-fashioned pitcher’s duel, with Cristopher Sánchez and Dodgers ace Tyler Glasnow trading zeroes and keeping opposing hitters off balance. The game remained scoreless through six innings, a testament to the pitching performance of both starters.
In the top of the seventh, the Phillies finally broke through when Nick Castellanos, batting eighth, doubled down the left-field line to score Max Kepler and give Philadelphia a 1–0 lead.
However, the Dodgers answered with a run of their own in the bottom half of the inning in about the most unconventional way possible. With Jhoan Durán now on the mound for Philadelphia, Los Angeles found itself with runners on second and third and two outs, with first base open. Phillies manager Rob Thomson elected to intentionally walk Shohei Ohtani, loading the bases for a righty-on-righty matchup between Durán and Mookie Betts. The count ran full, and on a 3–2 pitch, Durán missed with a fastball, walking Betts and forcing in the tying run, a bases-loaded walk that evened the score.
Some might question Thomson’s decision to walk Ohtani, who, despite being the favorite to win the NL MVP just behind Schwarber, was only 1-for-17 with eight strikeouts in the series against the Phillies.
After seven innings, the score was knotted at 1–1, and it stayed that way until the bottom of the 11th, an inning Phillies fans would just as soon erase from memory.
Jesús Luzardo took the mound to start the 11th inning and quickly struck out Freddie Freeman before surrendering a single to Tommy Edman. After getting catcher Will Smith to line out to center, Luzardo allowed his second hit of the inning, a single by Max Muncy that moved pinch-runner Hyeseong Kim to third. With Dodgers runners on the corners, Luzardo’s night came to an end as Thomson turned to Orion Kerkering out of the bullpen.
Kerkering loaded the bases by walking Kiké Hernández, bringing up Andy Pages, who had struggled immensely throughout the postseason, entering the at-bat just 1-for-23 with six strikeouts.
With two strikes, Pages made weak contact, breaking his bat on what appeared to be a routine ground ball back to Kerkering. But Kerkering was unable to field it cleanly, the ball rolling just a few feet in front of the mound. Behind the plate, Realmuto pointed toward first, signaling Kerkering to make the throw there, but the reliever instead turned and fired home. However, his toss sailed past Realmuto and toward the backstop, allowing Kim to score and give the Dodgers a stunning 2–1 walk-off victory.
The Dodgers will now advance to the NLCS, where they will face either the Milwaukee Brewers or the Chicago Cubs. It marks the seventh time in the past ten years that Los Angeles will compete for the NL pennant, with a chance to repeat as World Series champions still very much alive.
The Phillies, meanwhile, head home with their 2025 season abruptly over, an ending few could have anticipated after such a dominant regular season. It will be a pivotal offseason in Philadelphia, with several core players set to enter free agency. President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski will have his work cut out for him as he evaluates the team’s early postseason exit and strategizes how to keep the core intact for another run next year.
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