It had been a rough week for Rhys Hoskins. A flub of his with the glove on Wednesday played a pivotal role in the Phillies' Game 2 loss against Atlanta in the NL Division Series, plus he entered Friday riding a horrid 1-for-18 streak at the plate this postseason.
He changed that narrative in Game 3, connecting for a three-run homer to highlight a six-run third inning that propelled the Phillies to a 9-1 victory over the Braves at Citizens Bank Park.
The win gives the Phillies a 2-1 advantage over Atlanta in the best-of-five series and allows the club the opportunity to close the series out at Citizens Bank Park on Saturday.
Hoskins crushed a first-pitch fastball from Spencer Strider and deposited it about ten rows deep into the left field seats. He emphatically spiked his bat into the ground and began sprinting around the bases before crossing the plate and embracing Bryce Harper near the on-deck circle.
"He said we ain't losing," Hoskins said. "He's been saying it since our first day in St. Louis. I think it's the belief that he has in us. It's the belief we have in each other."
Harper himself launched a homer later in the frame, a two-run shot that scored J.T. Realmuto after he reached via a single. Brandon Marsh started the rally, reaching base via a walk before advancing to third on an errant pickoff attempt. Bryson Stott pushed him across with an RBI double to rightfield following a nine pitch at-bat.
Braves starter Spencer Strider looked impressive over the first two innings, but his velocity dipped in the third when the Phillies pounced. It was his first action since injuring his left oblique on Sept. 18.
"I'm not sure if he got tired but just kind of looked like his stuff went down a little bit," said Phillies manager Rob Thomson. "I think the at-bat that really got us going was Stotts' at-bat, how he was grinding and grinding, fouling pitches off. And then I think it was a slider that he hooked down the corner."
Aaron Nola was superb, surrendering one unearned run on five hits over six innings. He also collected six strikeouts. He entered the contest riding a 14 1/3 scoreless streak and now hasn't allowed an earned run since Sept. 28 against Chicago.
"I don't think you can say enough about it, really," Thomson said. "[Nola's] stuff, his makeup, his toughness, his resiliency, just he's done it all. And I thought his stuff was really good tonight. I thought that his curveball tonight, especially, was as good as I've seen it this year. He's just pitched extremely well for us."
Noah Syndergaard will start on Saturday for the Phillies. The Braves will counter with veteran Charlie Morton on the bump.
"You could feel the energy everywhere in the stadium," said reliever Zach Eflin. "With all the chants and everything else, it was electric. It was unlike anything I've ever experienced here, and I couldn't imagine being the opposing team coming into an atmosphere like that."
Spectacular Starting
Through the first five games of this postseason Phillies starters have posted a 1.27 ERA over 28 1/3 innings while also limiting opponents to a .508 OPS.
