Phillies ‘choking down the drain’ with ‘magical’ Diamondbacks surging for final NL playoff spot
The Phillies took advantage of a Mets fold to reach the postseason in 2007, but nearly 20 years later, they are on the verge of their own collapse.
The Phils lost for the ninth time in 14 games Friday night, and their lead for the final wild-card spot in the National League is down to one game over the Diamondbacks with two games remaining.
Arizona holds the head-to-head tiebreaker.
The Phils have scored two runs during their three-game losing streak, including Friday’s 2-0 loss to the Rays, and their postgame show on NBC Sports Philadelphia — with host Michael Barkan and analysts Ricky Bottalico and Ruben Amaro Jr. — unloaded on the flailing team after the game.
“Two-nothing Tampa Bay, incredibly. Ruben, I would submit to you, they would flip the table if they could make contact with the table … Guess what, this season’s not just spiraling down the drain, it is choking down the drain,” Barkan said. “And if you’re watching this in that clubhouse, prove me wrong. I’ll be glad to eat my words.
“There are two games remaining in this regular season and this team has lost nine of its last 14 games. This is a September to forget, an epic September to forget for the Phillies, who have shown us very little this month. I wish I had some daylight for you, folks. I wish I had some hope … Right how I expect very little from this team with Arizona now [one game] back of a playoff spot.”
Amaro interjected, “That’s not nice,” during Barkan’s opening remarks, but Bottalico quickly added that “Michael’s not wrong” in his blunt assessment.
“No.1, I think you had your hope. You had Christopher Sanchez go out there and throw a nice game for ya. What did you do offensively? Absolutely jack,” the former All-Star closer said. “I mean, think about this, all this money that you put into all these players, who were supposed to be these big-time players. Nothing. And it hasn’t been just one game. It’s been the last three games.
“All you had to do was win one stinking game. I mean, you sit here and you wait for this team to win one stinking game.
Bottalico added that he could “feel the tension at the ballpark” among the unhappy crowd at Citizens Bank Park.
“They’re not there to necessarily go crazy for the home team; they are there to let them know that they know what’s going on right now,” Bottalico said. “And this team is not playing up to snuff. They are not. Are the starting pitchers? OK, they’re doing fine.
“But how in the world do you score two runs in three games when you need a win? If there is a pressure situation on a team, these guys that are paid that money are the guys that are supposed to step up. It’s not happening.”
The Diamondbacks, meanwhile, have won six consecutive games, including Friday’s 11-4 rout of the Padres — and they’re feeling themselves.
“Something magical is going to happen here,” shortstop Geraldo Perdomo said, per MLB.com.
In 2007, the Mets led the Phillies by seven games with 17 to play before going 5-12 and relinquishing the NL East title on the final day of the regular season.
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