Franco's grand slam extends Phillies' winning streak to five games

Franco’s grand slam extends Phillies’ winning streak to five games

Rebecca Serad

April 26 2017

By: Rebecca Serad, Sports Talk Philly Staff

Final: Philadelphia Phillies 7, Miami Marlins 4 ❖ Attendance: 26,191

Philadelphia, PA — Going into tonight's game, the Philadelphia Phillies (10-9) were hoping to get over the .500 mark with a victory over the Miami Marlins (10-9). They accomplished that goal, in addition to extending their winning streak to five games. Tonight's win brought the Phillies record to 9-7 against the National League East this season. Phillies starter Vince Velasquez has shown improvement over his last two starts, going further into games and using his pitches more effectively. He allowed three runs and struck out three over six and a third innings. After he left the game, the Phils' bullpen held the Marlins' bats in check.

The Phillies had plenty of offense. The big hit of the game was a grand slam by Maikel Franco in the third inning. He's the first Phillie in franchise history to have two grand slams in the first 19 games of the season. Freddy Galvis and Michael Saunders also homered in the game to help pull out the win.

WP: Vince Velasquez (1-2, 6.33 ERA) ❖ LP: Wei-Yin Chen (2-1, 4.71 ERA)

Hub: Game Summary ❖ Starting Pitchers ❖ At the Plate ❖ Bullpen ❖ What's Next

Game Summary

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
MIA	1	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	1	4	8	0
PHI	0	0	4	0	0	1	0	2	X	7	10	0

On the first pitch of the game, Dee Gordon tripled into the right field corner. After a strike-out by Martin Prado, center fielder Christian Yelich grounded out to short to score Gordon from third and give the Marlins an early lead. Giancarlo Stanton lined out to center to end the inning, and the damage was minimized.

The Marlins tacked on in the third inning. With one out, Prado homered to left field to add another run to the Marlins' total. Fortunately, that was all they were able to add in the inning, as Phillies starter Vince Velasquez was able to retire Yelich and Stanton to end the frame.

The Phils fought back in the bottom of the inning. Velasquez helped his own cause with a single to right. After a strike-out by Cesar Hernandez, left fielder Aaron Altherr and center fielder Odubel Herrera followed with back-to-back singles to load the bases. Maikel Franco hit a grand slam to left-center field, his second of the season and third of his career, to give the Phillies the lead. The next two batters were retired in order, but that one swing of Franco's bat had a big impact on the game.

The bats for both teams were silent for a few innings. However, that changed in the bottom of the sixth. After both Michael Saunders and Cameron Rupp were struck out by Marlins reliever Jarlin Garcia, shortstop Freddy Galvis strolled to the plate and hit a home-run to left field to add another run to the Phillies' total. The last out was recorded, but Galvis helped boost the Phils' lead.

The Marlins chipped away at the Phillies' lead in the top of the seventh. J.T. Realmuto singled to lead off the inning. One out later, Adeiny Hechavarria doubled into left field to score Realmuto. Phils reliever Joely Rodriguez retired pinch-hitter Ichiro Suzuki and second baseman Dee Gordon to end the threat.

The Phils added some more runs in the bottom of the eighth. With one out, Tommy Joseph singled to center field. Michael Saunders followed with his first homer in a Phillies uniform to help cushion the team's lead over the Marlins. The next two hitters were retired, but Saunders' bomb helped cement the lead.

The top of the ninth was the Marlins' last chance to make a comeback. With two outs, Justin Bour singled to right. He moved up to second base on defensive indifference. Hechavarria hit a single to left to score Bour for the Marlins' fourth run of the game. Derek Dietrich struck out to end the game and secure the Phillies' victory.

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Starting Pitchers