Bryce Harper has sent the Philadelphia Phillies to the 2022 World Series.
Harper’s two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning put the Phillies ahead, and Philly closed the door in the ninth for a 4-3 win over the Padres in Game 5 of the NLCS, giving the Phillies a 4-1 series victory.
The Phillies will make their first World Series appearance since 2009, when they lost to the Yankees. They defeated the Rays in the World Series the year prior.
Philadelphia benefitted from the expanded MLB playoffs, making it as the No. 6 seed to snap a 10-year playoff drought. But the team has been on a roll since the postseason started, sweeping the Cardinals 2-0 in the wild-card round and beating the Braves 3-1 in the NLDS before taking out the Padres.
The Phillies will face either the Astros or Yankees. Houston held a 3-0 series lead in the ALCS entering Sunday’s Game 4 in The Bronx, which was delayed by rain.
Harper is hitting .419 with five home runs and 11 RBIs in the playoffs.
SAN DIEGO — Bryce Harper homered again, Kyle Schwarber hit a jaw-dropping, 488-foot drive and Zack Wheeler was brilliant in throwing one-hit ball for seven innings to lead the Philadelphia Phillies over the San Diego Padres 2-0 Tuesday night to open the all-wild card NL Championship Series.
Wheeler and two relievers combined on a one-hitter for Philadelphia. The Phillies managed just three hits off Yu Darvish and the San Diego bullpen — the combined four hits matched the fewest ever in a postseason game.
The Phillies will try to take a 2-0 lead when they send Aaron Nola to mound to oppose Blake Snell on Wednesday afternoon. Nola is set to pitch against his brother, Padres catcher Austin Nola.
The Padres, who eliminated the 111-win Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS, had only four baserunners, including a single by Wil Myers in the fifth. Still, they had a chance to win in the ninth against José Alvarado.
Jurickson Profar drew a one-out walk and Juan Soto reached when third baseman Alec Bohm made an errant throwing trying for a force. Manny Machado flied out and Alvarado struck out Josh Bell for the save, looking skyward and clapping after getting the final out.
Harper, trying to reach his first World Series, hit a high-arcing, opposite-field shot into the first row in left field with one out in the fourth. It was the fourth home run this postseason for Harper, who was playing in San Diego for the first time since his left thumb was broken when he was hit by a pitch by Blake Snell on June 25, sidelining him for two months.
Harper homered in his third straight postseason game. The two-time NL MVP, who won the award last year, has hit nine home runs in 26 career postsaseason games.
Schwarber’s incredible shot on Darvish’s first pitch of the sixth had an exit velocity of 119.7 mph and was the first to reach the right field upper deck at Petco Park, which opened in 2004. It was the farthest in his career and the farthest at Petco in the Statcast Era and gave the Phillies a 2-0 lead.
Schwarber raised his right arm as he rounded first base and Harper stood in the dugout with his mouth agape in amazement.
They were the latest impressive home runs for the Phillies, who are back in the playoffs for the first time since 2011. The last won the World Series in 2008. They’ve hit eight homers in seven games this postseason.
Harper joined Gary Matthews (1983) as the only players in franchise history to homer in three straight postseason games in the same year. Harper hit one homer in the wild-card series win at St. Louis and two in going 8 for 16 as the Phillies eliminated the defending World Series champion Atlanta Braves in the NLDS.
Rhys Hoskins had an epic bat spike on a monster homer against the Braves, and J.T. Realmuto became the first catcher in postseason history to hit an inside-the-park home run.
The Phillies at times stunned Petco Park, where a sellout crowd of 44,826 was amped up for the Padres’ first NLCS appearance since 1998. It was 78 degrees at first pitch at 5:04 p.m., a big change from Saturday night’s rainstorm during the Padres’ 5-3 clinching win in the NLDS.
But Wheeler had he Padres totally off balance, allowing only a one-out walk to Juan Soto in the first and then retiring 12 straight batters until Myers singled with one out in the fifth. Wheeler then retired his final eight batters. He struck out eight and walked one on 83 pitches.
Seranthony Dominguez pitched a perfect eighth.
Darvish took the loss, allowing two runs and three hits in seven innings while striking out seven and walking one.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
Cookie
Duration
Description
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional
11 months
The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy
11 months
The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.