Philadelphia Phillies third baseman Edmundo Sosa hit Omar Narvaez’s catcher’s mitt with his bat with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 10th inning for a dramatic win over the Boston Red Sox on Monday in Philadelphia. File Photo by Tannen Maury/UPI | License Photo
Edmundo Sosa triggered one of the oddest endings of the MLB season, with his bat hitting Carlos Narvaez’s mitt, resulting in a walk-off catcher’s interference call to lead the Philadelphia Phillies past the Boston Red Sox.
The awkward sequence occurred in the bottom of the 10th inning Monday at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. Sosa went 1 for 1 with an RBI in the 3-2 triumph.
“There’s two things, this year, that I’ve never seen before in 40 years,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson told reporters. “One is a walk-off inside-the-park home run, and [the other is] a walk-off catcher’s interference.”
Outfielder Jarren Duran hit a 365-foot home run off Zack Wheeler in the first at-bat of the night to give the Red Sox an early edge. Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos tied the score with an RBI single in the fourth. Catcher J.T. Realmuto followed with another RBI single in the next exchange with Red Sox starter Walker Buehler for the Phillies’ first lead.
The Phillies held that advantage until Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story plated third baseman Alex Bregman with an RBI single in the top of the sixth. Neither team scored for the next three innings, resulting in extra innings.
Phillies relief pitcher Max Lazar retired the Red Sox in order in the top of the 10th. Red Sox pitcher Jordan Hicks walked third baseman Otto Kemp to start the bottom of the final inning. He then issued an intentional walk to left fielder Max Kepler, loading the bases.
Hicks quickly earned an 0-2 lead on Sosa in the next exchange. He missed the strike zone with a 100.4-mph sinker, his third offering. Sosa fouled off the next pitch.
Hicks ended the exchange by tossing in an 86.6-mph slider to the Phillies infielder. Sosa threw his bat into the zone in a check swing attempt, but his bat hit Narvaez’s glove as it came forward. Home plate umpire Quinn Wolcott initially called the pitch a ball because he did not see Sosa’s bat hit the mitt. Sosa spoke to Wolcott and signaled for a replay review.
Wolcott then reversed the call, bringing outfielder Brandon Marsh in from third base for the game-winning run.
“To be honest, this feels exactly like a home run,” Sosa said.
Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper went 2 for 4 with double and a run scored. Kepler also reached base twice with a single and a walk for the Phillies. Wheeler allowed seven hits and two runs, while tossing 10 strikeouts, over six innings. Lazar and fellow Phillies relief pitchers Tanner Banks, Orion Kerkering and Matt Strahm combined to allow just one hit and no runs over the final four innings.
Story went 2 for 4 with an RBI in the loss. Buehler allowed six hits and two runs, including one earned, over seven innings. Hicks, who did not allow a hit, but issued two walks, dropped to 1-6 this season.
“Everything went so quick,” Narvaez said of his catcher’s interference. “It’s really tough that happened in that moment. That cost us the game. … But it happened and I take accountability for it.”
With their victory, the Phillies improved to 57-43 and took a half-game lead on the New York Mets for first place in the National League East. The Red Sox (54-48), who lost three of their last four games, sit in third place in the American League East, six games behind the division-leading Toronto Blue Jays (59-41).
The Phillies will host the Red Sox in the second game of the series at 6:45 p.m. EDT Tuesday in Philadelphia.
