Trea Turner hits two home runs as Phillies hold off late rally against Braves

ATLANTA — Last Saturday, shortly after Trea Turner went 0-for-4 against the Miami Marlins, he told reporters that he was trying too hard. He could feel himself chasing. It was hard not to, given the predicament the Phillies had found themselves in.

Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber were placed on the injured list the day before. J.T. Realmuto wasn’t expected back before the All-Star break.

“You want to do the same thing [at the plate],” Turner said June 29, “but I think sometimes guys try a little bit harder in situations. I know today that was probably the case with me.”

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He felt good in his last at-bat of that night, against A.J. Puk, and took that feeling into his cage work the next morning. Turner has gone 11-for-23 since. His hot streak continued on Friday night, in an 8-6 win over the Atlanta Braves.

The Phillies shortstop finished the game with four RBIs. He hit two home runs. The first, a two-run homer, traveled 425 feet to left field. The second, another two-run shot, traveled 459 feet to left center. It was his second multihomer game this week and the 16th of his career.

“I feel like when I can repeat [my mechanics], I can have good at-bats,” he said. “End the at-bat when I should. I felt like today, if the pitch was in the zone, I took a good swing at it, and if it wasn’t, I took it.

“So, I think the at-bats were good all day, and the decision making was good, and that comes from kind of repeating that load, and seeing the ball good.”

The timing of Turner’s hot streak couldn’t be better for the Phillies. They’re not just down three sluggers, but have also struggled to hit with runners in scoring position lately. Turner has helped with that. He’s driven in 10 runs over his past seven games.

“That’s who he is,” said manager Rob Thomson. “When he’s hot, he gets hotter than heck. And that’s what he’s doing right now.”

The Phillies’ runners-in-scoring-position woes continued (they went 2-for-11 on Friday) but it was a good overall offensive night. The lineup combined for eight runs on 15 hits. Five runs and 11 of those hits came off of Braves starter Max Fried.

The Braves weren’t playing their cleanest baseball, and the Phillies took advantage. In the seventh inning, they tacked on three insurance runs thanks to three errors and some savvy baserunning. Edmundo Sosa doubled to lead off the inning, and Whit Merrifield reached first on an error by Matt Olson.

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Merrifield stole second base, and Johan Rojas singled to score both runners. Reliever Jesse Chavez tried to throw him out at first, but the ball sailed past Olson, allowing Rojas to advance to second base (Chavez was charged with a throwing error).

Rojas stole third, and catcher Travis d’Arnaud tried to throw him out, but like Chavez, misfired. Rojas sprinted home as the ball rolled into the left field. Third baseman Austin Riley was charged with the error.

This is what you have to do against a team like the Braves. Even without Ronald Acuña Jr., they have enough thump in their lineup to change a game in a heartbeat.

“You’ve got to create things,” said Thomson. “And the guys were able to do that tonight.”

The Phillies were reminded of this throughout the game. Starter Aaron Nola held the Braves hitless through his first three innings. Atlanta’s first hit came in the fourth: A one-out single to center field hit by Ozzie Albies. Riley, the next batter, hit a two-run home run.

The Braves pounced again in the eighth. The Phillies entered the inning leading, 8-3. They left it with a 8-6 lead. With runners on first and second, Marcell Ozuna hit a two-out, three-run home run off José Alvarado.

The Phillies were unable to add another run in the ninth, and Jeff Hoffman closed out the game. He induced a pop up by Adam Duvall, a flyout by Orlando Arcia, and struck out Eli White to end the inning. Hoffman earned the save, and Nola earned his 100th career win.

The Phillies now have a 10-game lead over the Braves in the NL East.