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AP Photo/Matt Slocum Los Angeles Angels’ Shohei Ohtani walks to bat during the first inning of a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2023, in Philadelphia.
AP
11:10 JST, August 31, 2023
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Bryce Harper put the Philadelphia Phillies ahead in the eighth inning with his 300th home run, but Brandon Drury capped a three-run ninth with a tiebreaking, two-run homer that lifted the Los Angeles Angels to a 10-8 victory on Wednesday that prevented a three-game sweep.
In a game with four lead changes, Los Angeles led 7-6 before Harper’s two-run homer in the eighth off Matt Moore (4-1). Harper and Moore were 1-2 among Baseball America’s top prospects in 2012.
“I really wanted to do it at home in front of this fanbase and this great city,” Harper said. “Hopefully, there’ll be 300 more.”
Harper’s homer, his 15th this season and 10th in August, came in the 30-year-old’s 1,481st game. He homered in three straight games for the second time this month and has 10 homers in August. Moore was the 224th pitcher he went deep against.
“He certainly has a flair for the dramatic,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said.
AP Photo/Matt Slocum Philadelphia Phillies’ Bryce Harper reacts after hitting a two-run home run against Los Angeles Angels pitcher Matt Moore during the eighth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2023, in Philadelphia.
Pinch-hitter Mike Moustakas struck out leading off the ninth but reached on a wild pitch by Craig Kimbrel (7-5). Nolan Schanuel’s single put runners at the corners, giving him a team-record 10-game hitting streak at the start of his big league career. Luis Rengifo hit a sacrifice fly to tie the score.
After Shohei Ohtani struck out, Drury lofted a fastball on the outside corner to the opposite field and over the wall in right for his 19th homer.
“It was crazy,” Drury said. “It felt like every time we scored they came back and scored, too. But we kept fighting until the end and were able to pull out a win.”
Kimbrel blew a save for the third time in 24 chances. All three have come after the All-Star break.
“We thought with Kimbrel going out there it was pretty much over, but he just didn’t have it today,” Thomson said.
Carlos Estévez struck out two in a perfect ninth for his 29th save in 31 chances.
Ohtani was 1 for 4 with an RBI and was 5 for 13 with three RBIs in the series. Hunter Renfroe had three hits and four RBIs for the Angels (64-70).
AP Photo/Matt Slocum Los Angeles Angels’ Shohei Ohtani follows through after hitting a run-scoring single against Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Cristopher Sanchez during the fifth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2023, in Philadelphia.
Philadelphia (74-59), which leads the NL wild card race, trailed 5-3 before Trea Turner’s three-run homer in the sixth against Reynaldo López. Renfroe put the Angels ahead 7-6 with a two-run single in the eighth off Seranthony Dominguez.
BIG MONTH
Harper’s homer was the Phillies’ 59th in August, tied for the third most by any team in a single month in major league history and the most by an NL team in August.
AP Photo/Matt Slocum Philadelphia Phillies’ Bryce Harper reacts after hitting a two-run home run against Los Angeles Angels pitcher Matt Moore during the eighth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2023, in Philadelphia.
