Nick Castellanos sometimes surprises himself with his ability to win a game with just one swing.
As he walked up to the plate with two outs in the ninth inning, two runners on base, and the score tied, Castellanos felt he could win Game 2 of the NL Division Series for the Philadelphia Phillies.
Even against a tough 1-2 slider from Mets reliever Tylor Megill. “I did like that pitch when I saw it,” Castellanos said.
As Phillies fans cheered loudly, their excitement echoed outside Citizens Bank Park, showing they liked that pitch as well.
Castellanos hit a single that brought Trea Turner home, giving the Phillies a thrilling 7-6 win over New York and tying the NLDS at one game each.
“I said to the guys, Rocky would be proud,” postseason star Bryce Harper said. “Never-die mentality. Just a great game.” This win was more meaningful than any story.
Castellanos, who led the majors this season with four walk-off hits, tossed his helmet and was surrounded by teammates on the field as a game that looked lost just an inning earlier turned into yet another comeback for the NL East champions.
He ran over to his son, Liam, who has been a constant presence at the ballpark, and they shared a big “Let’s Go!”
“When I’m old and no one cares about me as a baseball player anymore, we’re going to be home and be able to remember and look back at that,” Castellanos said.
His performance in Game 2 will be remembered in Philadelphia sports history. Castellanos had two big swings and misses in the fourth inning, falling to an 0-2 count. He didn’t swing at a pitch in the dirt and showed his frustration when he heard boos from fans.
His tying homer in the sixth inning made the score 3-3, and Castellanos scored the go-ahead run on Bryson Stott’s two-run triple during a three-run eighth that put Philadelphia ahead 6-4.
“He came up big for us a lot this year,” Stott said. “It feels like every walk-off hit is Nick, and that’s who he is. And his heart rate doesn’t get up, stays the same. And gets the swing off.”
Megill got the first two batters out in the ninth before walking Turner and Harper, who also homered and scored twice. Castellanos then hit the Phillies’ fifth career postseason walk-off hit.
“Just made a bad pitch, backed up on me,” Megill said. After falling behind 0-2, Castellanos took a pitch in the dirt and then hit a hanging slider into left field, getting the towel-waving crowd at the ballpark excited.
“Unbelievable. Unbelievable,” Castellanos said. “If he blows a fastball by me, so be it. I’d rather that than swing at something in the dirt. It was incredible but the series is even. Now we go to New York and there’s a lot of baseball left.”
Game 3 is Tuesday in New York, marking the Mets’ first home game since September 22.
“No excuses. It’s been hard, but here we are,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “I’m just looking forward to getting back to Citi Field.”
In just the second postseason game between the NL East rivals, the Mets and Phillies battled intensely over the final four innings, with each game-changing swing becoming more emotional than the last.
Mark Vientos hit two two-run homers for the Mets, who also got solo home runs from Pete Alonso and Brandon Nimmo.
“I think we put on quite a show for everybody in attendance and everybody watching on TV,” Nimmo said.
Harper’s two-run homer and Castellanos’ solo shot in just three pitches from Luis Severino helped the Phillies come back from a 3-0 deficit in the sixth inning. “Missed my location and paid for it,” Severino said.
After Nimmo’s homer in the seventh inning off Orion Kerkering gave New York a 4-3 lead, Stott hit a go-ahead, two-run triple down the right-field line on his 27th birthday, following Harper’s walk and Castellanos’ single off Díaz in the eighth.
“He threw a slider that I thought I could finally hit, and was able to pull it down the line,” Stott said.
Díaz, who has a 9.37 ERA at Citizens Bank Park, threw 104 pitches over three outings in a week. Díaz criticized his approach to Harper, saying, “I think I was a little bit lazy to him instead of attacking him.”
J.T. Realmuto’s grounder brought Stott home for a 6-4 lead, but Vientos hit a two-run homer off Matt Strahm, an All-Star lefty who struggled against the Phillies for the second straight game.
Harper, who wore a “Showman” headband, got the Phillies back on track when he crushed Severino’s fastest pitch of the day, a 99 mph fastball, 431 feet into the shrubs in center field as fans cheered loudly.
“That was sick,” Harper said. “Best fanbase in the world.” Phillies fans were still cheering when Castellanos followed with a tying homer to left-center and sprinted around the bases.
Now it’s off to New York. “Both teams, man,” Harper said. “Punch for punch.”
