Aug 19, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto (10) hits an RBI single during the third inning against the Seattle Mariners at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images Eric Hartline
As broadcaster Tom McCarthy noted during the eighth inning of Tuesday's game, the Phillies often do their best work late in the game. It was no different on Tuesday.
Kyle Schwarber started the game off in the only way he knows how:
Kyle Schwarber. Like CLOCKWORK. pic.twitter.com/SZm4hzZojC
With his 44th home run of 2025, Schwarber put himself back in sole possession of first place on the NL home run leaderboard, breaking a tie with Shohei Ohtani. (Of course, Ohtani hit his 44th home run in the second inning of tonight's Dodgers game, so they are tied yet again.)
Schwarber came out swinging, and Cristopher Sánchez came out dealing. The left-hander racked up five strikeouts in the first two innings and struck out the side in the second:
Cristopher Sánchez striking out the side in the second, via @PitchingNinja👀👀👀 pic.twitter.com/p8VhccR8AZ
The game was tied 1-1 after the top of the third, but the Phillies tacked on a few more runs in the bottom of the inning. Three stolen bases, a Bryce Harper sacrifice fly and a J.T. Realmuto RBI single put the Phillies up 3-1:
J.T. Realmuto puts the Phils ahead 3-1… and later, he became the third Phillie in the third inning to steal a base👀pic.twitter.com/K8nkt7BNam
Next, Bryson Stott – who is hitting .317 over his last 15 games – hit an absolute rocket:
A no-doubter Stott Shot! pic.twitter.com/pmM50TdoOW
Things remained stable until the top of the seventh. Sánchez exited the game after tying his career high with 12 strikeouts, and he tipped his cap to the crowd at Citizens Bank Park:
Citizens Bank Park shows Cristopher Sánchez some love after his 12-strikeout performance❤️ pic.twitter.com/epGQbWLTW8
Orion Kerkering entered the game in relief and proceeded to issue a pair four-pitch walks to his first two batters. A few questionable calls during the second walk by home plate umpire Erich Bacchus didn't help him, but Kerkering's control was off regardless.
With the bases loaded, Julio Rodríguez brought a runner in with a groundout, and then previous Phillies trade target Eugenio Suárez brought the other two in with a double. The Mariners quickly erased a 4-1 Phillies lead and made it a 4-4 tie game.
In the bottom of the eighth, one of the best hitters in baseball since June 1 stepped up to the plate and came in clutch:
The red-hot J.T. Realmuto gives the Phillies a late lead with this 💣
pic.twitter.com/OOLZwkQSVz
Realmuto, who also homered in Monday's game, is hitting .326 with 15 doubles and four home runs since June 1. He has an OPS of .815 in that time period. That's pretty darn good.
And then of course, how do you even begin to plan for Jhoan Duran? How do you prepare to face an at-bat of three straight 102 mph fastballs?
Poor Cal Raleigh fell victim, and the rest is history.
Fire vs. Power
Jhoan Duran retires Cal Raleigh with 102-MPH heat to end the game 🔥 pic.twitter.com/hZLNqsz6Al
The Phillies will go for the series sweep over the Mariners Wednesday afternoon at 1:05 ET.
