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Tuesday was there for the taking for the Philadelphia Phillies before they ran themselves out of the game with one of the worst (and most hilarious) baserunning blunders you'll ever see. The Phillies turned second and third with one out in the ninth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers into a game-ending 5-2-6-4 double play thanks to J.T. Realmuto's brain cramp (LAD 2, PHI 1).
The scene: Realmuto was at second with Justin Crawford at third. Tanner Scott, who got the final two out of the eighth inning, was still in to face Brandon Marsh. He got Marsh to hit a tapper to Max Muncy at third. Muncy threw home, Crawford retreated to third and was tagged out, then Realmuto got caught wandering back to second base for some reason. Here's the play:
What Realmuto was doing, I truly have no idea. The proper play is for Realmuto to stay at third and Crawford stay in a rundown long enough for Marsh to get to second base, which turns second and third with one out into second and third with two outs. Given that there was on-and-off rain throughout the game, maybe the Dodgers even throw a wet ball away during the rundown. Alas.
"Just a bad baserunning play, really," Realmuto said after the game (via MLB.com). "We were going on seeing it through there, and once Craw gets in the rundown and I'm on third base, there's no reason for me to go back to second. Just a lack of judgment. You can't make two outs on that play. I've just to stay in scoring position."
That play was a result of Realmuto's baserunning mistake, for sure, but give the Dodgers some credit too. Mookie Betts made a very good throw to second base from an awkward position after tagging Crawford, and it was still a bang-bang play. Realmuto almost got bailed out and was safe at second. Almost.
If that play looks familiar for Phillies fans, it's because they made a very similar baserunning blunder last July against the Los Angeles Angels. Second and third with no outs turned into a 4-2-6-2-5 double play. Here's that play:
Believe it or not, Baseball Prospectus and FanGraphs both rate the Phillies as the fourth-best baserunning team in baseball. Those are all-encompassing metrics that include stolen bases, going first-to-third on a single, advancing on pitches in the dirt, etc. The Phillies are a good baserunning team. They just do dopey things every now and then, like they did on Tuesday night.
"There's a lot of talent on both of our teams," Realmuto said after the game (via MLB.com). "So you're going to see a lot of times the games are going to be won by the little things. They've been able to make less mistakes than we have, really, in our series going back to last postseason … It's the little things that you have to do well to beat a team like that."
The Phillies, who are chasing down the Braves in the NL East, currently sit three games back in the division and 3 ½ games up on a wild-card spot. The Dodgers, meanwhile, are sitting pretty at 11 ½ games up in the NL West.
