Brandon Marsh’s go-ahead pinch-hit sacrifice fly in the eighth inning helped the Philadelphia Phillies secure a 3-2 win over the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday night.
This victory extended the Phillies’ lead in the National League East to seven games over the Braves, with five more games left between the two teams in the regular season.
“Every win is an important win,” said Phillies starter Aaron Nola. “No lead (in the division) is a big enough lead right now, especially with those guys over there. They always play us really good. It is always a challenge.”
Weston Wilson went 2 for 3 and scored the winning run in the eighth after starting with a double. Kyle Schwarber and Trea Turner each drove in a run for the Phillies.
Nola pitched 5 1/3 innings, allowing two runs on eight hits and two walks, while striking out five.
“I tried to keep it at two as best I could and give the guys a chance to score some runs,” Nola said. “It was a good win.”
Matt Strahm (5-2) got the win by pitching a scoreless seventh inning.
Carlos Estévez earned his 22nd save by stranding runners on second and third to end the game.
Atlanta’s Max Fried had his best performance in four starts since returning from the injured list after the All-Star break. He gave up two runs on four hits in seven innings and struck out four. Joe Jiménez (1-5) took the loss.
Phillies manager Rob Thomson was pleased with his team’s efficiency, noting they scored three runs with just six baserunners in the game.
“We manufactured all three of our runs,” Thomson said. “Wilson leads off (the eighth) with a double. (Bryson) Stott pinch hits, long fly ball moves him over. Marsh pinch hits, long fly ball, gets him in. That’s how you win playoff games.”
Orlando Arcia went 1 for 3 with his 12th home run, and Jarred Kelenic was 2 for 4 with a run scored for Atlanta.
