It took seven innings for Bryce Harper and the Phillies to flip the switch. But when they did, everything went haywire — walks, hit batters, chaos — and somewhere in the middle of it all, Harper found his way into the record books.
The Phillies scored four runs in a seventh inning that barely required swinging a bat, turning a back-and-forth game into an 8-4 win over the Pirates on Friday night at Citizens Bank Park. Harper, who reached base four times, picked up the 1,000th RBI of his career in that same bizarre frame — becoming one of just eight active players to hit the milestone.
That seventh inning? A masterpiece in mayhem. Six straight Phillies reached base against three different Pittsburgh relievers. The only hit? A single by Trea Turner. The rest? Walk, walk, hit by pitch, hit by pitch, walk. It was a parade of base traffic that would’ve made even the most patient leadoff hitter blush — and somehow, three of the four runs scored without anyone making contact.
Harper tacked on career RBI No. 1,001 with a base hit in the eighth, while Turner added a triple in the same inning as the Phillies padded their lead.
Ranger Suárez (2-0) gave up a three-run homer to Alexander Canario but kept things manageable over seven innings, allowing three runs on six hits. Jose Alvarado bailed out a ninth-inning jam to record his seventh save.
Ryan Borucki (0-1) faced two batters, retired none, and was charged with two runs — all part of a seventh inning that belonged more in a fever dream than a box score.
Nola Hits the IL
The Phillies placed right-hander Aaron Nola on the 15-day injured list Friday with a sprained right ankle, an issue the team hopes is more about timing than long-term concern.
Nola, 31, was roughed up by the Cardinals on Wednesday night — giving up 12 hits, nine runs, and three homers, all career highs — and admitted afterward the ankle had been bothering him since a training session in Tampa last week.
Manager Rob Thomson said the team made the move to prevent Nola from overcompensating and risking a more serious injury. Nola hasn’t missed a start since 2017, aside from a 10-day COVID list stint in 2021, and the hope is that this absence will be brief.
The Phillies placed right-hander Aaron Nola on the 15-day injured list Friday with a sprained right ankle, an issue the team hopes is more about timing than long-term concern.
Nola, 31, was roughed up by the Cardinals on Wednesday night — giving up 12 hits, nine runs, and three homers, all career highs — and admitted afterward the ankle had been bothering him since a training session in Tampa last week.
Manager Rob Thomson said the team made the move to prevent Nola from overcompensating and risking a more serious injury. Nola hasn’t missed a start since 2017, aside from a 10-day COVID list stint in 2021, and the hope is that this absence will be brief.
