The Phillies may have the best record in baseball since Don Mattingly took over as manager, but they haven’t looked particularly prepared to play the last two nights.
Philadelphia ran itself out of an inning again during this painful series against the Dodgers, with second baseman Bryson Stott running on contact with one out in the fifth inning of the 9-5 loss Wednesday.
Despite the ball being hit in front of him, Scott ran right into the waiting arms of third baseman Max Muncy for the second out in a 3-3 game.
The Phillies did not score again in the inning.
“Down to third to [Max] Muncy and Stott runs into an out,” the Dodgers broadcaster Joe Davis said on the call. “What are these guys doing?”
“No clue,” color analyst Orel Hershiser responded.
The Phillies own an impressive 47-28 record since Mattingly took over as the team’s manager after Rob Thomson was fired following a 9-19 start, but this baserunning over the last two nights has cost them.
Philadelphia lost two of three from the Dodgers, and the Phillies broadcast team wasn’t happy either when they lost Tuesday’s one-run game on a game-ending 5-2-6-4 double play.
Stott normally would not be be running on contact on this play, as he’s already in scoring position, so running into an out at third base is a terrible move considering he should be able to score on a hit.
Players are also not supposed to run to third when the ball is hit in front of them.
Making it even worse for the Phillies, their best hitter, Kyle Schwarber, was on deck, although he ultimately popped out to end the threat.
Mattingly was never viewed as a bad manager with the Dodgers and Marlins for struggles with his teams on the basepaths; rather, he was known for poor bullpen management and over-reliance on small ball.
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