Philadelphia Phillies’ Derek Hill reacts after hitting a solo home run off Atlanta Braves pitcher Dylan Dodd during the seventh inning of a baseball game, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Derik Hamilton)
In what had stopped being a pattern in the month of August, the Philadelphia Phillies bullpen squandered a yeoman effort from a starter in Sunday’s loss to the Atlanta Braves.
By Chris Murray
For the Philadelphia Sunday SUN
For seven innings on Sunday, the Philadelphia Phillies had all the right ingredients to win the second game of their crucial four-game series against the Atlanta Braves.
Starting pitcher Aaron Nola was solid in a seven-inning stint in which he only allowed one run on four hits with five strikeouts. There was also some clutch hitting late in the game with a pair of solo homeruns from Derek Hill, who was pinch-hitting for outfielder Brandon Marsh, and Kyle Schwarber, who hit his Major League-leading 42nd home run of the season.
The pieces were all in place for Nola to get his seventh win of the season and more proof that the tunnel that was the first half of his Phillies season had some light at the end of it.
But thanks to the Phillies bullpen, that light turned out to be an oncoming train.
The bullpen gave up five runs, including a three-run homer from Ronald Acuna Jr., to once again ruin the Phillies opportunity for them to cut into Atlanta ‘s National League East lead in a devastating 5-4 loss at a sold-out Citizens Bank Park.
“You know Aaron gets us where we need to go,” Phillies manager Don Mattingly said during his postgame press conference. “Seven solid innings. Then we get the two solo homeruns and then you’re feeling good. You feel like it was it was a tough one.”
Atlanta took the lead for good in the top of the ninth inning on an RBI triple by third baseman Austin Riley off Phillies closer Jhoan Duran that scored Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies, who reached on a double.
With the Phils leading with one out and two men aboard in the top of the eighth, the Phillies young relief pitch pitcher Alex McFarlane, who had been a bright spot in the bullpen, gave up the home run to Acuna Jr. and tied the game at 4-4.
Even more painful for the Phillies and their fans, was how Acuna did his home run trot around the bases flapping his arms like he was a bird as he was rounding the bases while taunting fans who booed lustfully and with contempt.
McFarlane said he wasn’t bothered by Acuna’s antics running the bases; he was more focused on allowing that home run in a crucial spot in the game.
“Just don’t give up homers in that spot,” McFarlane said. (Acuna) can do what he wants. I was focused on making my pitch and I didn’t make my pitch in my moment,
McFarlane said while he was disappointed about giving up that homerun, he’s not going to allow this outing to define the rest of his season.
“The plan was just to attack and make my pitches, but the result didn’t go my way,” McFarlane said after the game. “I have [to] keep being aggressive in my pitches and trust in my stuff going forward. I just have to come to the field the next and flush it.”
It was a harder pill to swallow for Nola, who has been pitching really well over the last two months. He has a 2.31 earned run average in his last eight starts since July 28. In five of his starts, he has just one earned run and has not allowed a home run in consecutive starts for the first time this season.
“It was a tough one today, no doubt about it, but we have to come out tomorrow and compete (Jesus Lazardo) is gonna give us everything he’s got, we need to split the series with these guys and just take it game by game,” Nola said.
The Phillies took a 2-0 lead in the first inning on a sacrifice fly by second baseman Luis Arraez that scored Schwarber and an RBI double by first baseman Alex Bohm that brought home shortstop Trea Turner, who reached on a fielder’s choice and went to second on a throwing error by shortstop Mauricio Dubon.
Including Monday’s game, the Phillies and Braves will face each other another four times before the end of the season.
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