MUNCY’S MUFF IN 10TH BRINGS HOME PHILS’ WINNING RUN
The play seemed to unfold almost in slow motion.
A bouncing grounder. A high hop. A booted ball by second baseman Max Muncy, rolling helplessly away from him on a bright, sunny — and suddenly dreadful — Philadelphia day.
A game the Dodgers should have won on Sunday against the Phillies instead came unraveled all at once, with Muncy’s fielding error leading to two runs and a walk-off 4-3 win for the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. The Padres moved to within a half-game of the Dodgers in the NL West standings.
Clinging to a one-run lead with Phillies runners on second and third in the bottom of the 10th inning, the Dodgers were one out away from a win when Alec Bohm sent the softly-hit chopper Muncy’s way.
Muncy took a few steps in, set his feet and appeared to be well-positioned for a seemingly routine play.
But the final bounce kicked higher than he expected. He lifted his glove, but couldn’t stop the ball from trickling through his legs.
“That’s something that you know as an infielder, as the day goes on, the field is getting harder and the ball is gonna bounce more and take funny hops,” Muncy said. “I just didn’t give myself enough space.”
As the ball rolled slowly behind him, Phillies baserunner Garrett Stubbs (Torrey Pines High) scored easily from third to tie the game.
The real problem for the Dodgers was Roman Quinn, the speedy Phillies outfielder who got a good jump at second base at the start of the play.
As Muncy frantically tried to retrieve the ball, a sprinting Quinn came f lying around third base. Muncy made a good throw home from the middle of the infield. But Quinn’s headfirst slide was just in time. The tag from catcher Austin Barnes — confirmed by a video review moments later — was a split second too late.
“Unfortunate circumstance,” Muncy said. “I just couldn’t find the ball.”
The Dodgers (27-13) had took an early lead 2-0 on solo home runs from Mookie Betts and Edwin Ríos. They also got an impressive six-inning, seven-strikeout start from right-hander Tony Gonsolin, who didn’t yield a run until Stubbs’ solo home run in the sixth.
It was Gonsolin’s second straight six-inning start, and lowered his team-best ERA to 1.62.
Notable
New York Mets pitcher Chris Bassitt has an $8.65 million salary this season as part of a one-year contract that avoided an arbitration hearing set for today. The deal includes a $19 million mutual option for 2023 with a $150,000 buyout.
The Orioles agreed to a $5,925,000, two-year contract with left-handed pitcher John Means, avoiding arbitration. Means is out for the season following Tommy John surgery.
Diamondbacks third baseman Josh Rojas was out of the starting lineup for Sunday’s series finale against the Chicago Cubs because of a left hand contusion.