Phillies unable to overcome Jake Arrieta’s dud in streak-snapping loss to Braves

It’s unlikely that the shortest — and probably the worst — start of Jake Arrieta’s long career will cause Phillies manager Joe Girardi to feel any less bullish about a starting rotation that he believes represents one of the team’s strengths.

But the biggest questions now, with the trade deadline set for 4 p.m. Monday, are these: What does general manager Matt Klentak think? And what will he do about it?

With a chance to sweep the Atlanta Braves and move to within one game of first place in the National League East, Arrieta threw a dud Sunday night. He got knocked out in the midst of a 10-run second inning that proved too much for the Phillies’ relentless offense to overcome in a 12-10 loss at Citizens Bank Park.

“Just flat-out didn’t throw the ball very well,” Arrieta said. “As a starting pitcher, you can’t necessarily win the game by yourself but you can lose it. I felt that was pretty much the story of the night. Giving up 10 runs in one inning, it’s hard to overcome that.”

The Phillies’ winning streak ended at five games, and they missed a chance to lift their record above .500 for the first time this season. With 31 games left in a 60-game sprint, they are 14-15, three games behind the division-leading Braves and tied with the Miami Marlins for the playoff berth that comes with finishing second.

“I like how our team stacks up,” Girardi said before the game. “I think at times we have played really well. When you’re running a good starter out there every day you have a shot. I like our team.”

Could it be better, though?

Of course it can. And there’s pitching available, starters and relievers, in what appears to be a seller’s market, especially with the postseason having expanded to 16 teams this year.

But after giving up three pitchers 10 days ago in two trades for relievers David Hale, Brandon Workman and Heath Hembree, will the Phillies be willing to give up other prospects — and possibly push beyond the $208 million luxury-tax threshold — for even a potential short-term pitching boost?

“I don’t really think we need anything else,” Arrieta said. “I think we have the starting pitching to get it done.”

Sunday night notwithstanding, presumably.

Arrieta was making his 252nd career start, 24th-most among active pitchers. It was saying something, then, that this represented his shortest start by both total pitches (46) and innings (1 1/3). It also marked the first time ever that he gave up more runs (seven) than he recorded outs (four).

Strangely, though, Arrieta didn’t get rocked. Of the seven consecutive batters who reached base against him with one out in the second inning, only one went for extra bases (Austin Riley’s RBI double). Otherwise, the Braves did in Arrieta with a deluge of singles and walks.

“It was a weird night,” Arrieta said. “It’s pretty hard to give up seven, eight runs in an inning. I found a way to do that tonight.”

Hale, who hadn’t pitched in 19 days despite being acquired in an Aug. 21 trade with the New York Yankees, replaced Arrieta and allowed three hits, including a two-run double to Nick Markakis and Riley’s two-run homer.

The rout was on, right?

Wrong.

The Braves are as desperate for starting pitching as any team. They acquired journeyman lefty Tommy Milone from the Baltimore Orioles for two players to be named on Sunday morning just to bring stability to a group that lost young ace Mike Soroka for the season to a torn right Achilles tendon, has not yet gotten an inning from Cole Hamels because of triceps tendinitis, and saw struggling Mike Foltynewicz and Sean Newcomb get demoted.

Clearly, though, the Braves need more than Milone. Staked to a 10-run lead by his brand new club, he gave back one run in the second inning on Didi Gregorius’ homer and six in the third. The Phillies hit for the cycle against Milone in that inning, getting singles from Roman Quinn, J.T. Realmuto, and Jean Segura, an RBI double from Andrew McCutchen, a two-run homer from Hoskins, and a two-run triple from Gregorius.

“When it got to 10-4, I thought, ‘You know what, we’re going to hang around this game and we’re going to have a chance to win it,’” said Girardi, who was ejected in the ninth inning for asking the umpires to discuss home-plate umpire Roberto Ortiz’s call that the Braves’ Ender Inciarte fouled a ball off his foot.

But there’s a reason why the Phillies haven’t come back from a 10-run deficit since June 8, 1989 against the Pittsburgh Pirates. It’s really, really difficult, especially against the Braves’ collection of stud late-inning pitchers.

The Phillies cut the deficit to one run with back-to-back solo homers by Quinn and McCutchen in the eighth inning, but Braves closer Mark Melancon slammed the door shut in the ninth.

By the time the Phillies return to the field Monday night, the roster might look slightly different. Or maybe it won’t.

All eyes are on Klentak.

“That’s up to the GM and everybody, what they want to do,” Gregorius said. “But if the team can get better, then yeah, we can get even better. That’s not in our players’ control. But I trust in these guys here.”