The Phillies left Atlanta with their Wild Card series alive, riding Alec Bohm’s two-out homer in the 10th inning to a 4-3 win over the Braves on Wednesday night. Philadelphia had been pushed behind by two runs, had watched Bryce Harper misplay a key ball in right field, and still found enough thunder late to send the best-of-three set to Thursday’s deciding Game 3.
Bohm came up against Atlanta right-hander Didier Fuentes with two outs in the 10th and drove a 357-foot shot into the right-field seats for his third postseason home run. There was no automatic runner aboard under the postseason’s traditional extra-inning format, making Bohm’s swing the clean break in a game that had been tied since the Phillies’ eighth-inning comeback.
Andrew Painter, used as a regular-season starter, gave Philadelphia exactly what a worn bullpen needed. The right-hander worked three scoreless innings after entering in relief, earning the win and keeping the Braves off the board after Bohm’s blast. His finish was especially memorable: Mauricio Dubon singled with one out in the 10th, Painter struck out Austin Riley, then Michael Harris II dropped a bloop single into play.
With two aboard, Dominic Smith took a 0-2 fastball that plate umpire Adam Beck ruled inside. Painter and catcher J.T. Realmuto immediately challenged the call through the automated ball-strike system. The review showed the pitch had nicked the strike zone, turning it into the game-ending strikeout and the first postseason game to end on an ABS challenge.
Late power erases Atlanta’s seventh-inning push
Atlanta had taken control in the seventh after Cristopher Sánchez had largely kept the lineup quiet. Sean Murphy doubled with one out in the fifth, the Braves’ first hit since the opening inning, and Atlanta finally broke through two innings later.
Drake Baldwin lined a drive toward Harper in right with runners on first and second. Harper, who had played first base before shifting to the outfield at the trade deadline, was positioned shallow and could not recover in time. The ball glanced off his glove for a double, bringing Murphy home for a 2-1 Braves lead. Matt Olson followed with a sacrifice fly to make it 3-1.
“It probably should have been caught, obviously,” Harper said afterward.
Harper answered with his bat in the next inning. Kyle Schwarber opened the Phillies’ response by launching a 447-foot home run off Dylan Lee, who had earned the win in Atlanta’s 5-3 Game 1 victory Tuesday. Harper followed with a 418-foot drive, tying the score at 3-3 and wiping away the sting of the defensive mistake.
Sánchez gave Philadelphia 6 2/3 innings, allowing three runs while throwing a career-high 116 pitches. Tyler Mahle was similarly strong for Atlanta, surrendering one run and six hits across seven innings. Mahle did not record a perfect frame until the fifth, when he struck out Schwarber and Harper. Sánchez, meanwhile, escaped a fifth-inning situation after intentionally walking Ronald Acuña Jr. with two outs and getting Baldwin on a grounder to second.
Acuña had helped Atlanta strike first in the opening inning. He walked, stole second, then took third when Edmundo Sosa did not cover the bag before coming home on Olson’s single.
Sosa later exited after beating out an infield hit to begin the ninth. He appeared to aggravate a leg issue and was replaced on the bases by Derek Hill.
Philadelphia now gets one more chance to extend a familiar October edge over Atlanta. The Phillies beat the Braves in the 1993 National League Championship Series and eliminated them again in the 2022 and 2023 National League Division Series. Thursday’s Game 3 gives them another winner-take-all night, with Bohm’s swing and Painter’s challenged final strike having made it possible.
