The REAL deal - Phillies 5, Cubs 4

Well, that was scary for a minute.

Jake Arrieta began on the bump for the Phils tonight, and looked impressive to start the night, setting down Kyle Schwarber, Kris Bryant, and Anthony Rizzo with zero trouble.

Fast forward to the 3rd, where Arrieta had a bit more trouble with those same three hitters to begin the frame, though, as Schwarber hit a leadoff triple, and was then driven in by a single from Anthony Rizzo.

Both offenses went quiet in the subsequent frames, but the Phillies’ lit up later on in the 6th inning. Jean Segura got on base thanks to a fielder’s choice, and went on to steal second base. Bryce Harper then walked, and JT Realmuto drove Segura in with a single up the middle, bringing Cesar Hernandez to the plate.

Remember that guy that everyone wanted off of the team a month ago? Yeah, turns out he’s actually pretty good. Circa 2017 Cesar Hernandez was an elite contact guy, and 2019 is looking to be a resurgence offensively for the 29 year-old second baseman.

The man himself hammered a triple to right, plating both Harper and Realmuto, giving the Phillies a 3-1 lead. He was 3-for-5 on the night, raising his average to an impressive .310 on the season.

Jake Arrieta then completed the 6th turning in a stressful, but solid outing. He was rather contact prone, but staved off a relentless Cubs offense.

His final line:

6 IP, 8 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 4 K

However, the Phils lead was crushed in the 8th, as Seranthony Dominguez, who was sent out for a controversial second inning, walked both Victor Caratini and Jason Heyward, who were driven in by Daniel Descalso, who also ended up scoring. The Cubs took the lead, 4-3.

The Phillies were down to their final inning — which began well thanks to a Maikel Franco double, following an Odubel Herrera groundout.

And then, as all hope looked lost, Jean Segura, who was on the verge of losing his 10-game hitting streak, hit a bloop single to right, plating Franco, and tying us up at 4-4.

The Cubs then failed to score in the bottom of the 9th — and it was on to extras.

The Phillies sent Bryce Harper, Rhys Hoskins, and JT Realmuto to the plate, and after two fly outs, JT Realmuto delivered with a shot to left field, giving the Phillies a 5-4 advantage heading into the bottom of the 10th.

Adam Morgan and Juan Nicasio then combined to close it out, and the Phillies claimed the first game of the series at Wrigley.

JT was REAL(muto) clutch tonight.