LOS ANGELES — A home run counts the same whether the ball lands in the first row of the bleachers or soars out of the stadium.
But sometimes distance matters.
That was the case Wednesday night when Kyle Schwarber’s 455-foot blast pumped new life into the Philadelphia Phillies.
It was one of two home runs Schwarber hit to propel Philadelphia to an 8-2 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 3 of the National League Division Series before 53,689 fans at Dodger Stadium.
“It’s ridiculous how far that ball went,” Phillies shortstop Trea Turner said.
The Dodgers still lead the best-of-five series two games to one. Game 4 is 6:08 p.m. Thursday.
The Phillies, who were all but laughed out of Philadelphia after losing the first two games of the series in Citizens Bank Park, are in position to put the pressure squarely back on the Dodgers with a Game 4 win. Game 5, if necessary, is Saturday night in Philadelphia.
Both Schwarber and the Phillies had struggled in the first two games and the first three innings of Game 3.
Schwarber was 0 for 8 with five strikeouts in the series when he stepped to the plate in the fourth inning. The Phillies were down 1-0.
What makes postseason baseball so riveting is a single swing can change the narrative.
That’s what Schwarber did. He blasted a 96 mph fastball from Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto to tie the score. Just as important, the home run, which cleared the right field bleachers, gave the Phillies back their mojo. How long the ball traveled gave Philadelphia even more momentum. The Phillies scored two more runs that inning and never looked back.
“I think I said (Tuesday) we were missing the slug, missing the homer,” Turner said. “And no better person to do it than (Schwarber). I also thought the at-bats right after that were great. Sometimes homers are rally killers, and to get those extra runs in that inning were big, and it starts with (Schwarber).”
The stadium seemed to give a collective gasp as Schwarber’s home run soared off into the distance.
“I mean, when I hit it, I knew it’s a home run,” Schwarber said. “But I didn’t even see where it landed. I was looking in the dugout trying to get the guys going.
“I knew I hit it good. I didn’t know where it went. Eventually somebody tells me. You watch it on video where it goes. Anything positive for our offense is going to be great. But, yeah, it was a cool moment.”
The other key part of Wednesday’s win was the pitching of Aaron Nola and Ranger Suarez.
The plan, Thomson said after the game, was for Nola to go through the Dodgers lineup once. The second time left-handed, lead-off hitter Shohei Ohtani would step to the plate, he would face the left-handed Suarez.
The plan worked almost perfectly.
Nola, whose fastball touched 95 mph in the first inning, threw two scoreless innings.
Suarez entered in the third. The first pitch he threw, Dodgers No. 9 hitter Tommy Edman belted over the fence.
That was the only hiccup.
Suarez allowed just that lone run in five innings.
“After it happened,” Suarez said, “I’m just like, ‘Let me settle down. I don’t want to give up another one.’ ”
The Phillies broke the game open late. Schwarber’s second home run, a solo shot that traveled 368 feet, came in a five-run eighth inning that gave the Phillies a commanding 8-1 lead.
Thomson was prepared to use Phillies closer Jhoan Duran for two innings Wednesday. Instead, he didn’t have to use him at all, which means he should be able to throw two innings if needed in Game 4.
“Would have loved to get Duran in the game tonight,” Dodger manager Dave Roberts said.
Duran said: “I’ll be ready for anything (Thursday) they need me for.”
The Phillies will turn to Cristopher Sánchez to start Game 4. The Dodgers will counter with Tyler Glasnow.
If the Phillies can grab an early lead, Dodger Stadium is sure to get tense.
“It’s just a matter of doing enough to win the game,” Turner said. “We didn’t do that the first two (games), and now we’re kind of in the hole.
“But we have the group of guys to pull ourselves out. It’s going to be hard. It’s not going to be easy. It’s a great team over there. They’ve got plenty of superstars, good players, great pitching. And we’ll have to play our best to do it, but it starts (Thursday) and today was a good start.”
Contact: 609-272-7209
MMcGarry@PressofAC.com
X @ACPressMcGarry
Can’t get enough High School sports? Get the latest scores, game highlights and analysis delivered to your inbox each week
* I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Get in the game with our Prep Sports Newsletter
Sent weekly directly to your inbox!
* I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Mike McGarry
Staff Writer
Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily!
Your notification has been saved.
There was a problem saving your notification.
{{description}}
Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.
Followed notifications
Please log in to use this feature
Log In
Don’t have an account? Sign Up Today