Sunday Funday: Phillies 5, Mets 2

Scott Kingery eased the pain from a weekend of missed opportunities in a lost series against the Mets, delivering a three-run double in the 8^th inning to break a 2-2 tie and allow the Phillies to salvage a win from the three-game set. Before the big hit from the second-year man, the Phillies had gone 2 for 11 with runners in scoring position Sunday night—with one of those hits ending in a runner thrown out at the plate—following a 1 for 9 performance in Saturday’s 6-3 loss.

Kingery’s heroics also helped take Gabe Kapler and Hector Neris off the hook after a brutal top of the eighth. Kapler had pinch-hit for starter Zach Eflin in the previous inning, ending his strong night after just 84 pitches. The Phils had squandered yet another scoring opportunity, and for some reason, the new pitcher was Mike Morin, a pitch-to-contact specialist whom the Mets had seen and punished on Friday. After a Todd Frazier single, a walk to Brandon Nimmo, and a sacrifice, Morin departed with one out and men on second and third. In came Neris, who got the second out at home on a Jeff McNeil fielder’s choice, leaving men at first and third. That brought up Pete Alonso, who’d done the Mets’ lone damage against Eflin with a first-inning homer. He walked—and the tying run came in when Neris bounced ball four away from J.T. Realmuto.

But Bryce Harper led off the bottom of the eighth with a single, Rhys Hoskins followed with a walk, and both advanced on a deep flyout from Brad Miller, who’d led the offense earlier with a home run and a double. An intentional walk to Hernandez brought up Kingery, who mashed his 31^st double of the year to the left field gap.

Neris took care of business in the top of the 9^th, and the Phils had their 70^thwin to move within 2.5 games of the Cubs for the second wild card, if you’re into that sort of thing.

The victory also lifted the Phils’ 2019 record against the Mets to 10-6, giving them the series win for the first time since 2011.