The Tigers finally drew blood in the bottom of the 5th, in something of an unlikely circumstance: two outs, with the 8 and 9 hitters up. McKinstry doubled, and Carson Kelly hit one right up the middle and just past the outstretched glove of Stott, providing the home team with their first run.
Any relief the Tigers faithful felt was short-lived. The top of the 6th saw Cristian Pache and Schwarber take bases on balls, with Harper being given a 2-out chance to score them. The ensuing homer to right came as a surprise to no one. 7-1 Phillies.
The 8th saw Bohm continue his torrid streak at the plate, doubling to left to score Harper from first. By this point his fielding blunder from earlier had faded into the background, his 4 for 5, 3 RBI night hogging the spotlight.
The bottom of the 8th saw Nola hand the ball to a Phillie making his first appearance in MLB: Michael Mercado. Mercado wasted no time, striking out the first batter he faced in the bigs. A popout and a grounder completed his unblemished debut.
The Phillies loaded the bases in the 9th with singles from Marsh, Pache, and Garrett Stubbs. The Phillies couldn’t bring any of those runners home, but it hardly mattered: their 7-run lead wouldn’t be challenged. Orion Kerkering was tasked with finishing off the game. He allowed a two-out double to Wenceel Pérez, but induced a flyout from Urshela to end the game.
So many Phillies fans showed up in Detroit that “MVP” chants could be heard as Harper gave his postgame interview. The Phillies possess the best record in baseball. As baseball hurtles towards the All-Star break, all seems right with the world. The Phillies are 52-26. The series against the Tigers continues tomorrow at 6:40.
Before there was an out, there was a lead. You’ll always take that, especially to begin a road trip. Everything was humming from the jump for the Phillies, looking so much like a well-oiled engine that any General Motors engineers in attendance might’ve felt a twinge of envy.
The lead didn’t come with the traditional leadoff Kyle Schwarber home run, but rather with Schwarber reaching on an error from Tigers shortstop Zach McKinstry, a Trea Turner double, and then a double by Bryce Harper to score them both. Alec Bohm — currently on pace to start for the National League in what would be his first All-Star game — hit a two run homer for good measure. 4-0 to end the first. Any hope the Tigers had of regaining ground in their half of the first was stymied by Aaron Nola, with a 1-2-3 inning and 2 Ks.
The only hiccup in the second came when Bohm fielded a weak grounder from Gio Urshela with Mark Canha on first and only one out; what should have been an inning-ending double play became just a single out when Bohm tossed the ball to first, having seemingly forgotten the number of outs. Fortunately, a quick punchout of Justyn-Henry Malloy ensured that the only cost of the mistake was some embarrassment.
In the bottom of the third, the Tigers put their first runners on base when McKinstry and Carson Kelly both singled. That brought old friend Matt Vierling to the plate with runners on the corners and none out. Vierling lined it to Nola for an out; Nola quickly tossed the ball to first to put out Kelly. That was all routine. Less so was McKinstry’s reaction. Seemingly not realizing that the ball hadn’t touched the ground before hitting Nola’s glove, McKinstry broke for home and was put out with a toss to third, for a triple play.
The Phillies’ stars continued to produce at the plate in the 5th, with Harper stretching a hit into a double (he might’ve been caught with a better throw, though that was of little comfort to the Detroits), and Bohm advancing him to third with a single. Casey Mize struck out Nick Castellanos, and was then pulled for Tyler Holton. Holton induced two quick outs from Bryson Stott and Brandon Marsh, leaving the Phillies’ lead at 4-0.
Philadelphia Phillies' Bryce Harper celebrates after hitting a three-run home run against the Detroit Tigers during the sixth inning of a baseball game Monday, June 24, 2024, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)ASSOCIATED PRESS
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