Because both the Phillies and the Diamondbacks were without starting pitchers on Friday, Game 4 would most likely come down to whichever manager wielded the most power.
But nothing Phillies manager Rob Thomson tried seemed to work, and his strange decisions in the latter stages eventually ended the team’s chances. Thomson was guilty of going to the well repeatedly and expecting some players who had not done well recently to emerge.
Thomson wanted both veteran Craig Kimbrel and rookie Orion Kerkering to play a large role on Friday night, despite their problems the day before. The results were disastrous.
Kerkering committed an error on Thursday during his Game 3 outing when he failed to record an out and allowed the game-tying run to score after just three hitters were faced. In the eighth inning of Game 4, with the Phillies up 5-2, Thomson returned to the rookie pitcher. The Phillies were ahead 5-3 at the end of the game after the youngster promptly loaded the bases and walked in a run.
The Phillies were up two runs against closer Corey Kimbrel, who had given up a walk-off single to second baseman Ketel Marte the day before, when Thomson asked again in the eighth to take the game into the ninth inning. Naturally, the wheels came off immediately.
To tie the game 5-5, Kimbrel gave up a three-run blast to pinch-hitter Alek Thomas after he had allowed two of the first three hitters he faced to reach base.
Thomson left Kimbrel on base after putting two more runners on, but it was too late to throw him out. As soon as Jose Alvarado entered the game, catcher Gabriel Moreno hit the game-winning RBI single, and that was the end of the game.
The shell was stunned. After leading the series 2-0, the Fightins were crushed with little fight in the top half of the ninth inning, falling two games to one to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
If the Phillies do not make it back to the World Series, this winter, Thomson’s actions in Game 4 might be examined again, even though there is still a lot of baseball left.
