DENVER — Seranthony Dominguez has not pitched in many high-leverage situations of late, but on Saturday night, he found himself in the seventh inning of a one-run game. It did not begin the way he would’ve liked. Brenton Doyle singled, stole second base, and then, amid Domínguez’s at-bat against Jacob Stallings, he stole third.
But Domínguez remained calm. He struck out Stallings on a four-seam fastball that just nabbed the corner of the zone, and induced a soft groundout to Hunter Goodman that dribbled down the third-base line. Catcher Garrett Stubbs grabbed the ball, took a look at Doyle, and gunned it to first base to record the second out.
Charlie Blackmon grounded out to end the inning. The Phillies were still trailing the Rockies, 3-2, but keeping the game at just one run was big. It has been an uncharacteristically light series for the lineup, which held to just two runs through eight innings in Saturday’s game. But thanks to a ninth-inning rally, and strong pitching, they got the job done in an 8-4 win over the Rockies.
Starter Aaron Nola struggled initially but gained momentum as the game went on. After a 32-pitch first inning, in which he’d allowed back-to-back walks and an RBI single, he began to pitch more efficiently. Nola retired the last seven hitters he faced, finishing his night with a 10-pitch fifth inning and an 11-pitch sixth inning.
Nola allowed three runs — of which two were earned — on five hits, with two walks and five strikeouts over six innings.
Jose Ruiz was steady — once again — in the eighth, pitching one inning, and allowing one hit with one walk and two strikeouts. He was helped by a leaping catch in left field made by Kody Clemens, who had played just nine MLB games in left field before Saturday night.
And in the ninth, the Phillies’ lineup rallied back. Brandon Marsh worked a leadoff walk, and the Rockies called on Justin Lawrence to try to pitch the rest of the ninth inning. Edmundo Sosa tripled and Marsh scored from first base. Stubbs hit a single to right field to score Sosa and give the Phillies the go-ahead run.
Clemens grounded into a double play but Schwarber doubled in his next at-bat to keep the inning alive. Bryson Stott walked, and the Rockies called upon reliever John Curtiss. Bryce Harper hit a three-run home run to clear the bases and provide a 7-3 cushion. Alec Bohm doubled, and Nick Castellanos hit a line-drive single to score Bohm.
Castellanos tried to stretch it into a double and was thrown at second base. Spencer Turnbull, who pitched the ninth inning, retired Doyle and Stallings on strikeouts. Turnbull allowed a single to Goodman and an RBI double to Blackmon but finished the game with a strikeout of Ezequiel Tovar.
