{"id":668253,"date":"2026-04-07T12:00:27","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T12:00:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/668253\/"},"modified":"2026-04-07T12:00:27","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T12:00:27","slug":"a-phillies-comeback-win-at-oracle-park-it-really-happened","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/668253\/","title":{"rendered":"A Phillies comeback win at Oracle Park? It really happened"},"content":{"rendered":"

SAN FRANCISCO \u2014 The rally had started before Giants manager Tony Vitello did what every manager in baseball would do \u2014 raise his left arm to summon a lefty reliever to face Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper in the seventh inning. It could have fizzled right there because Oracle Park is a veritable hell for the Philadelphia Phillies. They had lost 18 of their previous 22 games here, including one last year on a walk-off, inside-the-park home run by a catcher.<\/p>\n

Almost all of them hate it here. Almost.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d Harper said after a 6-4 Phillies win Monday night. \u201cBody feels good, mind feels good every time I get in the batter\u2019s box. I don\u2019t know. I always have good mornings here, too. Going to eat and things like that. Dinner places. It\u2019s just a good city to come visit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Once Schwarber drew a four-pitch walk against that lefty reliever, Ryan Borucki, Harper saw a 1-0 fastball to hit. He didn\u2019t drive it, but he hit it hard enough through the right side for a two-run single to tie the game. The Phillies have two matchup-beating lefty hitters. It has a cascading effect; Alec Bohm was afforded a favorable right-on-left chance and delivered a go-ahead double, a cue shot down the first-base line.<\/p>\n

\u201cFinally, some luck,\u201d Bohm said. But that\u2019s what happens when you can apply some pressure on the opponent.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen they go to that (left-on-left) matchup, and it doesn\u2019t work out for them and they get through those two guys without getting an out, that\u2019s our chance for a pretty good rally,\u201d Bohm said. \u201cTonight, we capitalized on it.\u201d<\/p>\n

BRYCE’S THIRD HIT OF THE NIGHT TIES US UP! pic.twitter.com\/KKiXE7BgLj<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) April 7, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

They won a series opener at Oracle Park for the first time since 2014. (Marlon Byrd and Cody Asche homered that night while Ken Giles earned the win.) If they win one of the next two games, they will capture their first series win here since 2013.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s wild,\u201d Harper said.<\/p>\n

The first 10 games of this Phillies season have generated much focus on what they are not. It\u2019s natural; everyone has the highest expectations, and when a familiar roster flashes even the tiniest hint of an old habit, it must be the same story. So, think about these 6-4 Phillies in a different way: They are above the league average in most offensive categories. Their rotation has rarely stumbled. And even on a night when rookie Andrew Painter only lasted four innings, the bullpen shouldered a heavier load with five scoreless. Phillies relievers have retired 30 of the last 32 batters they\u2019ve faced.<\/p>\n

Schwarber is striking out too much, but he has an .856 OPS. Bohm has missed opportunities to produce runs, but he did his job Monday night. Trea Turner is chasing, but he\u2019s still fifth in the National League in runs scored. Justin Crawford is hitting the ball far too much on the ground, but he began the critical seventh inning with a hard-hit grounder into right field.<\/p>\n

And then there\u2019s Harper. One game will not undo a slow start. But two doubles, a single, a walk and three runs driven looks nice. It was Harper\u2019s first three-RBI game since Aug. 18, 2025. It was his first three-hit game since Aug. 26. Last summer, Harper had a four-hit game at Oracle Park and afterward he used the moment to declare he\u2019s still a good player<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast year, this is where he sort of got going,\u201d Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. \u201cHe likes hitting here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Harper had entertained a short-term offer from the Giants in that protracted free-agent dance between the 2018 and 2019 seasons. He always preferred a bigger commitment like the one the Phillies were promising. Maybe there\u2019s an alternate universe where Harper takes his chances in California.<\/p>\n

Probably not. It\u2019s not the best ballpark for a lefty slugger to hit, unless you\u2019re Barry Bonds. Harper wants 500 homers; his odds at that would have been suppressed if it were his home: He entered Monday\u2019s game with a career .203\/.327\/.355 batting line in 168 plate appearances at Oracle Park.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love playing here,\u201d Harper said. \u201cIt\u2019s one of my favorite parks to play in. I always have. There\u2019s times when I have good series here. There\u2019s times when I have bad series. Every time I come in here, I feel very confident in my ability to play well and feel good in there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\n Bryce Harper enjoyed his first three-hit game since August. (Thearon W. Henderson \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

The run-scoring double Harper hit in the fifth inning smacked the brick wall in right field. At 112.5 mph, it was his hardest-hit ball so far this season. That\u2019s something. So was the walk in the eighth before he tried to swipe second base with two outs and was caught stealing. It\u2019s not a Harper hot streak without a few risky base-running decisions.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel good,\u201d Harper said. \u201cI just have to keep plugging away.\u201d<\/p>\n

Winning the left-on-left situations late in games changes everything. Thomson prefers to alternate righties and lefties all the way through his batting order. Except when it comes to Schwarber and Harper. He is daring the opposing manager.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what we sort of stack those guys together,\u201d Thomson said. \u201cIf they want to take their best shot and do it right there, then that\u2019s OK.\u201d<\/p>\n

The reliever, Borucki, has a career .522 OPS against lefties. That is exceptional. It was even better in 2025 \u2014 .379 \u2014 and that is why San Francisco signed him for $1.5 million.<\/p>\n

\u201cBig spots \u2014 sixth, seventh inning \u2014 the best lefty is going to come out,\u201d Bohm said. \u201cIf those two can do a little damage or just get on base and we keep that line moving, that gets me an at-bat the lefty. It might get Adolis (Garc\u00eda) an at-bat against the lefty. That\u2019s how you kind of start stringing some things together. Then they\u2019ve got to go make another move, and now they\u2019re using two pitchers in one inning. Now you start talking about you know setting yourself up for a series.\u201d<\/p>\n

Imagine that. The Phillies setting themselves up for a successful series at Oracle Park.<\/p>\n