Phillies: It’s just one game and we’ll bounce back

PHILADELPHIA — So much for all those 46,000 red rally towel waving fan hopes of seeing their Phillies clinch the World Series at home.

If Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, Rhys Hoskins and the rest are going to win their third World Series title, they’ll have to do it in Houston this weekend.

The Astros made sure to poop whatever party they might’ve been planning here in the Cradle of Liberty — and they did it in a big way where the 5-0 final score to even the Series at two games apiece wasn’t even the big story.

Instead that honor went to Cristian Javier, Bryan Abreu,  Rafael Montero and Ryan Pressly, who combined to throw the third no-hitter in postseason history, the first one combined and the first in the World Series since the Yankees’ Don Larsen in 1956.

But if getting no-hit bothered them, you’d never know it.  In the postgame clubhouse, to a man the Phillies vowed to shake it off and come back tomorrow.

They say this won’t set them back from chasing their ultimate goal.  Why, they’ve even got their own bit of history to call upon.

On May 29 Mets’ righthander Tylor Megill and four relievers no-hit them 3-0 with Aaron Nola on the hill for the Phillies, The Phillies responded with a 4-1 win the following night.

“These guys, they got a short memory,” said manager Rob Thomson, who saw the Astros do all their damage in the fifth off Nola and lefthander Jose Alvarado, Alex Bregman’s two-run double the biggest blow. “They’re going to go home tonight — go to bed, come back in here tomorrow and prep and compete like they always do.

“I mean, a loss is a loss. That’s the way I kind of look at it.”

Even when it’s historical.  “I could give a ‘bleep,’” said Schwarber, who came closest to getting a hit when his third-inning smash down the first base line went barely foul at the last moment.  “I don’t know how else to state it

“We’ll be fine. He (Javier) made good pitches. Had good placement. Just chalk it up as a loss and go out there tomorrow.”

For Phillies fans, though, it was the first time in seven postseason tries, they had watched their heroes come up short.  Other than a pair of walks the hard-throwing Javier dominated while striking out nine in six innings, before giving way to Abreu who struck out the side in the seventh.  After Montero worked a 1-2-3 eighth, it was left to Pressly to put his stamp on history.

He fanned Brandon Marsh to start the inning, before walking Schwarber.  When Hoskins flied to right it was left to J.T. Realmuto to spoil the moment.  But when Realmuto bounced Pressly’s first pitch to Alex Bregman at third for the final out, the jubilant Astros poured onto the field in celebration.

The Phils hope that celebration is short-lived,  “We ran into some good pitching today,” conceded Harper, who struck out twice to go with a second inning walk.  “It happens . 

“He did a good job. Anytime you get beat you want to flush it That’s how the game works.  We’ve got to bounce back tomorrow. We’ve done it before. We’ve done it all year.  The last time we got no-hit we bounced back the next day. 

“So we’re excited to flush today get ready for tomorrow.”

To do it they’ll go against likely Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander, countering with righthander Noah Syndergaard.  But following Tommy John surgery that sidelined him nearly two years Syndergaard is no longer the flamethrowing “Thor” of old who he could regularly reach triple digits for the Mets.

But from here on anyone and everyone is fair game to get on the mound, as the Phillies hope to reverse an alarming Series trend of digging 5-0 holes in three of the first four games.  That they were somehow able to dig their way out of the first one against Verlander & Co, eventually pulling it out in the 10th on J.T. Realmuto’s homer, might be the only reason they’re not fighting for survival tonight rather than dead even. 

“It’s 2-2,” declared Harper, hours before he’ll play his final home game of the season. “It’ll take that any day of the week.”

Of course after becoming the victims of World Series history, what choice does he have?

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