Phillies fall short with rally in ninth as Nationals hang on to 4-3 Little League Classic win

With a smaller ballpark at the Little League Classic, one might expect the Phillies' bats to be very busy, but they were not until the ninth. By then, it was 'too little, too late.'

Trea Turner reacts after a strikeout in the first inning of a game against the Washington Nationals.Read moreHeather Khalifa / Staff Photographer

by Alex Coffey

Published Aug. 20, 2023, 9:59 p.m. ET

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — The fact that the Phillies had to fly from Washington D.C. to Williamsport Regional Airport on Sunday morning and participate in a host of events in the hours leading up to a 7:10 p.m. game time did not make their game against the Nationals count any less. It counted just as much as the other 161, and, from the Phillies’ perspective, it was actually quite important.

The team landed in Williamsport with a narrow 2.5 game lead over the San Francisco Giants in the National League wild-card race. With a record of 67-57, the Phillies still occupy the top wildcard spot, but only tenuously, which makes their three-game series against the Giants next week one of the biggest of the season. The Phillies will fly to Philadelphia late on Sunday night ahead of that three-game set. It’s not an ideal situation for a team in playoff contention.

But it is the situation they are in. With that being said, the Phillies would have preferred to enter their pivotal series against San Francisco with a series win against the Nationals. It did not pan out that way. They lost, 4-3, in the Little League Classic on Sunday night. They’ve lost five of their last seven games.

“You’ve just got to dust off yourself off and get after it,” said manager Rob Thomson. “It is a big series. You win that series and you create a little distance between yourself and San Francisco. They’ve got a good club, and they’re right on our heels. So we’ve got to get up tomorrow and play like it.”

Sunday night was another example of the inconsistent offense that has plagued the Phillies this season. Just the night before, in Washington D.C., the lineup came roaring back from a 3-0 deficit, tying the game 3-3 in the seventh, putting up an eight-spot in the eighth, and tacking on another run in the ninth.

On Sunday, against Trevor Williams, a pitcher they have clobbered in the past, they managed only two hits and no runs. They fared better against the Nationals’ bullpen, combining for three runs off of four hits. In the ninth inning, Brandon Marsh attempted to spark a late-game rally, hitting a two-out, RBI single in the ninth to drive home Bryson Stott.

After Marsh, Jake Cave hit a two-run home run to cut the Nationals’ lead to 4-3. But catcher J.T. Realmuto, who was pinch-hitting for Garrett Stubbs, struck out to end the game. The Phillies went 1-for-4 with runners in scoring position.

“It’s disappointing, but that [4-0 deficit] is something you’ve got to overcome,” said Thomson. “We just have to keep grinding. We hit some balls hard, and we got three in the ninth, but too little, too late.”

Zack Wheeler had a bumpy first inning, allowing four earned runs off of five hits, but bounced back quickly in his next six innings. Wheeler allowed just a walk and a single from that point forward. In his last start against the Nationals, on Aug. 8, Wheeler hypothesized that he may have been tipping his pitches. A similar pattern emerged on Sunday.

“Maybe they’re sitting fastball first inning,” said Wheeler. “I don’t know. But other than the first inning, I think it went well. I was able to keep them off the bases for the most part.”

Reliever Luis Ortiz came in for Wheeler in the eighth inning, allowing two hits and no runs or walks. But the Phillies weren’t able to rally back enough to overcome that four-run first inning.

“I think we’re ready to get back home, play in front of our fans,” Wheeler said. “Big series coming up. I think we wished we’d played better on the road but it is what it is now. Just got to go home and win some ball games.”