PHILADELPHIA — A week ago, in the aftermath of their National League Division Series victory over the Dodgers, the Padres set about mapping out plans for Philadelphia. Pitching-wise, at least, the NLCS always seemed fairly straightforward. With one caveat: Game 4 was going to be a challenge.
The Padres didn’t know whether they could trust Mike Clevinger as their No. 4 starter. They didn’t know whether Sean Manaea would be capable of covering the middle innings. They didn’t want to tax their bullpen too heavily amid a potential stretch of five games in five days.
Baseball has a way of being brutally honest. The Padres had questions upon questions about their Game 4 pitching options. Sure enough, Game 4 came and went, and they got their answers.
Not the answers they were hoping for.
The San Diego pitching staff was exposed in a nightmarish 10-6 loss to the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park, pushing the Padres’ season to the brink. They trail three games to one in the NLCS and must now win three games in three days to stave off elimination.
Clevinger faced four batters and did not record an out, giving back most of what the Padres had earned in the top of the first inning. Their early 4-0 lead was suddenly 4-3 — and they only managed to preserve that advantage by calling for Nick Martinez far earlier than they anticipated.
After three outstanding innings from Martinez, the Padres handed the ball to Manaea, who surrendered five runs in an inning and a third. At some point, manager Bob Melvin needed to get outs from his lower-leverage relievers. But asking the lefty Manaea to face the Phillies’ 2-3-4 of Rhys Hoskins, J.T. Realmuto and Bryce Harper always felt like a daunting proposition.
And that’s where the game swung. Hoskins launched a game-tying two-run homer. Realmuto followed with a walk and was doubled home by Harper. By the time Melvin emerged to remove Manaea, the Phillies had a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.