another<\/em> wild pitch to score Azocar and the Padres had a 3-2 lead. <\/p>\nDom\u00ednguez had just three wild pitches all regular season in 51 innings. He hadn’t yet thrown one in the playoffs in his 6 2\/3 innings of work. He threw three in the seventh inning in Game 5. <\/p>\n
As the saying goes, every time you view a baseball game, you have the chance to see something you’ve never seen before. Dom\u00ednguez made it ring true in this one. <\/p>\n
Darvish with tough luck again <\/h2>\n
Yu Darvish only gave up two runs in seven innings of work in Game 1, as he was tagged with solo homers by Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber. He was the tough-luck loser and it looked like a similar result was in store in Game 5. <\/p>\n
This time it was a two-run Hoskins homer and that was it. He gave up two runs on four hits in six innings. Thanks to the late comeback, he looked like he was in line for the well-earned victory. Given the way the bullpen had to be mostly emptied out in Game 4, you ca n’t give Darvish enough credit for his work in this one. The Padres season was on the line and he delivered. <\/p>\n
And then Harper happened. Darvish is left with an 0-1 record in this series despite pitching like an ace. <\/p>\n
Su\u00e1rez closes things down <\/h2>\n
The Phillies went to David Robertson for the ninth with a one-run lead, but he walked two straight batters with one out. Then Phillies skipper Rob Thomson turned to his No. 3 starters, Ranger Su\u00e1rez, to get the final two outs. <\/p>\n
Su\u00e1rez was a reliever before a starter at the big-league level. He was actually the closer for a very short time period last season, recording four saves. <\/p>\n
The first hitter Su\u00e1rez faced was Trent Grisham, and he laid down a bunt. He must’ve been bunting for a hit or he was mistaken and thought there were no outs. Regardless, the Phillies just took the out as Su\u00e1rez threw to first. Austin Nola was the Padres’ final hope, and he lined out softly for the final out with the go-ahead run left stranded in scoring position.<\/p>\n
Phillies manager Rob Thomson makes history <\/h2>\n
Remember, the Phillies were 21-29 through May. They won on June 1 but then fired manager Joe Girardi. Rob Thomson took over and they went 65-46 under him, a full-season pace of 95 wins. They’ve now gone 9-2 in the playoffs, too. <\/p>\n
Thomson is just the third manager in baseball history to take over in the middle of a season and win the pennant. He joins Jack McKeon of the 2003 Marlins and Bob Lemon of the 1978 Yankees. McKeon and Lemon both won the World Series, so Thomson is looking to follow in their footsteps. <\/p>\n
What’s next<\/h2>\n
For the Padres, they’ll head home for a big offseason. They’ll get Fernando Tatis, Jr. back early next season and it’ll be interesting to see how that unfolds. They’ll be a strong container again, in all likelihood.<\/p>\n
More importantly right now is the National League champion Philadelphia Phillies. This is their eighth pennant, joining 1915, 1950, 1980, 1983, 1993, 2008 and 2009. They’ll head out on the road for Games 1 and 2 of the World Series, probably to Houston to face an Astros team that has yet to lose this postseason. The Phillies will be heavy underdogs, but they were underdogs against the Cardinals, Braves and Padres and here they are. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n