Phils take drastic measures in loss to White Sox

PHILADELPHIA -- The Phillies had an outfielder on the mound and a pitcher in the outfield for the 14th and 15th innings Friday night at Citizens Bank Park.

But that wasn’t the crazy part.

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The crazy part was that the outfielder on the mound and the pitcher in the outfield gave the Phillies a chance to beat the White Sox. Roman Quinn pitched a scoreless 14th inning because Vince Velasquez threw out White Sox first baseman Jose Abreu from left field on a play at the plate that Bryce Harper, Mike Trout or any other strong-armed outfielder would be proud to make with the game on the line. But Quinn and Velasquez could only do so much as the White Sox finally scored a run in the 15th to win, 4-3.

“A pretty crazy first day,” new Phillies left-hander Jason Vargas said.

Crazy because Velasquez nearly threw out Leury Garcia at home in the 15th, except Garcia’s left hand just touched the plate before J.T. Realmuto tagged him to give Chicago the lead.

"I saw the throw before -- that first throw that he made," Garcia said. "So I was like, ‘Oh my God, I’ve got to go.’ He almost got me. But I got him."

Crazy because Velasquez made an incredible diving catch -- a five-star catch, according to Statcast -- in left field to end the 15th to keep Chicago’s lead at one.

“I’m one of those kinds of guys that can be counted on to play anywhere,” Velasquez said. “And you’ve seen me throw left-handed.”

But in a game that lasted 5 hours and 28 minutes, and ended at 12:36 a.m. ET, the Phillies lamented their lost opportunities. The game dropped them into third place in the National League East, seven games behind the first-place Braves, and a game behind the Cubs and Nationals for the two NL Wild Card spots.

“It was frustrating, certainly,” Phillies manager Gabe Kapler said. “I really thought the team stepped up in a major way, with everything on the line. They fought and clawed for every last inch. They never quit even under the circumstances. Look, I'm most proud of that. … I was proud of the Vince Velasquez plays in the outfield. I was proud of Roman Quinn. I was proud of the at-bats we grinded out to the best of our ability. It was a [bad] situation. It sucked. But the boys fought, all the way through to the end.”

It was a game they should have won. The Phillies went 2-for-13 with runners in scoring position. They stranded 15 runners. They had the bases loaded with one out in the first, seventh and eighth innings, but did not score. They planned to have right-hander Nick Pivetta pitch the eighth and ninth innings, but they pinch-hit for him in the eighth to try to build a bigger lead.

The Phillies chose the combination of right-hander Juan Nicasio and left-hander Jose Alvarez to pitch the ninth with a 3-2 lead. They allowed a run to tie the game.

The Phillies began the game a man down in the bullpen with closer Hector Neris serving the second game of a three-game suspension. Blake Parker pitched two scoreless innings before Zach Eflin pitched scoreless innings in the 12th and 13th. At some point, he started to feel some soreness in his right triceps.

Eflin is getting used to his new role in the bullpen, which means more frequent throwing on a more scattershot schedule. Kapler asked Eflin as he stood in the on-deck circle to hit in the 13th how he felt. Eflin said he felt sore but that he could continue to pitch.

“It's just soreness,” Eflin said. “I never pitched in soreness being a starting pitcher. So, it's definitely something different. I threw two days ago and was up twice tonight and then got in the game for two innings. I just got to get used to it.”

Left-hander Ranger Suarez tried warming up, but he also is getting used to his new role in the bullpen. He could not get his arm loose and he could not pitch.

Kapler already lost a truckload of relievers this season. Tommy Hunter, David Robertson, Victor Arano, Edubray Ramos, Pat Neshek, Adam Morgan and Seranthony Dominguez are currently on the injured list. He decided after Eflin unsuccessfully bunted, but eventually reached second base, that he would have Quinn pitch the 14th.

Velasquez pinch-ran for Eflin there.

“It wasn't the right thing to put him at further risk,” Kapler said. “We made that determination even at the risk of using a position player, who happened to pitch really well.”

But even after Velasquez, who has not played in the outfield since high school, fired a 94.7 mph throw to the plate to save a run in the 14th, reality eventually took over. The Phillies could not score. Statcast clocked Velasquez’s throw in the 15th at an even harder 95.0 mph. His play to end the inning had a 15 percent catch probability.

“I think that you feel like things are going your way at that point,” said Vargas, who allowed two runs in 6 1/3 innings in his Phillies’ debut following Monday’s trade with the Mets, “but at the same time you realize you’ve got a pitcher in left and an outfielder on the mound and those just aren’t normal circumstances.

“I think that the effort that was being given was pretty extraordinary as far as guys willing to do what they had to keep the game going and give the offense a chance to end the game with one swing. It was a really crazy night as far as a first game with a team. I can’t say that I’ve seen a better effort given to try to win a ball game.”