Castillanos + Turner’s double hit’ Philadelphia beats Atlanta 3–1 with ‘104 wins of the season’
Philadelphia defeated the Atlanta Braves by 3 in Game 4 of the 2023 Major League Baseball (MLB) postseason National League Division Series (NLDS, best-of-five series) held at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on the 13th (Korean time). They won the game by -1 and ended the series. On the other hand, Atlanta, which recorded the most wins (104 wins) in the major league this season, had to end the fall baseball season after four games without returning home.
As a result, the championship series in both the American League and the National League ended in game 3 or 4, completing the championship series (CS, best-of-seven) matchups. In the American League Championship Series, the Texas Rangers clashed with the Houston Astros, and in the National League Championship Series, the Arizona Diamondbacks faced Philadelphia.
Atlanta has Ronald Acuña Jr. (right fielder) — Aji Albis (second baseman) — Austin Riley (third baseman) — Matt Olson (first baseman) — Marcell Osuna (designated hitter) — Sean Murphy (catcher) — Kevin Pillar (left fielder) — The lineup was formed in that order: Orlando Arcia (shortstop) and Michael Harris II (center fielder). ‘Ace’ Spencer Strider took on the important starting role.
Philadelphia has Kyle Schwarber (designated hitter) — Tray Turner (shortstop) — Bryce Harper (1st baseman) — Alec Bohm (3rd baseman) — Bryson Stott (2nd baseman) — JT Realmuto (catcher) — Nick Castellanos ( The lineup was composed in this order: right fielder) — Brandon Marsh (left fielder) — Johan Rojas (center fielder). Ranger Suarez appeared as the starting pitcher.
The two teams maintained a tight 0–0 balance until the third inning, and Atlanta scored first in the top of the fourth inning. Riley, who appeared with 1 out, hit Suarez’s 4th pitch changeup and drew a solo arch that went over the left wall.
Then, Philadelphia also counterattacked with a home run. With one out in the bottom of the 4th inning, Castellanos pulled in Strider’s first pitch slider and balanced the score at 1–1 with a solo shot to left. Castellanos’ home run in two consecutive games.
Turner also contributed here. With one out in the bottom of the 5th inning, he attacked Strider’s first pitch slider and made a 2–1 comeback with a solo shot that went over the left wall. It was a hit so big that you could immediately tell it was a home run.
In the bottom of the 6th inning, Castellanos, the ‘main scorer of the tie,’ struck a strider once more. With 2 outs, he targeted Strider’s 5th pitch fastball and gave the team an additional point with a left-handed solo shot. It was Castellanos’ second consecutive multi-home run. According to MLB.com, the official Major League Baseball website, no player has hit multiple home runs in two consecutive games in the postseason. In the end, Strider could no longer defend the mound with this home run.
Atlanta also had a golden opportunity. With two outs in the top of the seventh inning, three consecutive walks by Pilar, Arcia, and Travis Dano put pressure on the opponent. Acuña Jr., who showed MVP-level performance this season, made a long hit against Craig Kimbrel, but center fielder Rojas collided with the fence and snatched the ball. It was a moment of stark contrast between the joys and sorrows of the two teams.
In the top of the 9th inning, Atlanta had a chance to get to first and third base with no outs thanks to a walk by leadoff hitter Osuna and a hit by Murphy, but Phila and Eddie Rosario retired with a fly ball, pouring cold water on them. The game ended with even Bon Grissom, who came to the plate in place of Nicky Lopez, recording a strikeout.
No matter what anyone says, the biggest contributors to the victory were Turner and Castellanos, who combined for 7 hits. The two players tormented the Atlanta mound by going 4-for-4 with 1 RBI and 1 run, and 3-for-3 with 2 RBIs. Masi also contributed to the team’s victory by recording 2 hits in 4 at-bats.
Suarez’s excellent pitching in the starting match against Strider was also decisive. He fulfilled his role as a starting pitcher, allowing 3 hits (1 home run), 2 strikeouts, and 1 run in 5 innings. In addition, the bullpen pitchers in this order are Cerantoni Dominguez (⅔ scoreless innings) — Jose Alvarado (1 inning no runs) — Craig Kimbrel (1 inning no runs) — Gregory Soto (⅓ innings scoreless) — Matt Strum (1 inning no runs) also blocked Atlanta’s pursuit with a scoreless relay.
Atlanta, which had already confirmed the district championship, showed a lethargy, scoring only 8 points in 4 games despite having sufficient preparation time. Although he boasted a solid performance that made him a candidate to win the World Series, the game did not go as expected as he was unable to capitalize on opportunities at important moments. On this day, both opportunities were canceled: with bases loaded with 2 outs in the top of the 7th inning and 1st and 3rd bases with no outs in the top of the 9th. The poor performance of key hitters was also painful, with Acuña Jr. and Alvis both recording no hits in 4 at-bats.
Strider, who showed great power by striking out 281 times this year, took the loss despite pitching well in Game 1 with 5 hits (1 home run), 2 walks, 8 strikeouts, and 2 runs (1 earned) in 7 innings, and then allowed 7 hits (1 earned run) in 5⅔ innings. (3 home runs) 3 walks, 7 strikeouts, and 3 runs were allowed, and he collapsed after hitting three home runs.
In particular, it is noteworthy that in this postseason, not only Atlanta but also teams that performed well in the regular season suffered the bitter taste of elimination.
The starting point was the American League wild card game. The Tampa Bay Rays, who ranked first in the American League wild card with 99 wins in the regular season, ended the postseason without being able to use their strength as they suffered two consecutive losses against Texas.
A similar situation occurred in the Division Series. The Baltimore Orioles, who rose to the top of the American League East Division, lost all three games against Texas. As they lost both the first and second games held at home, the trend completely shifted towards Texas, and they were unable to turn the atmosphere around in the away game to Texas.
The atmosphere in the National League was no different. The ‘Western division champion’ LA Dodgers lost all three games against Arizona and failed to advance to the championship series. Kershaw, who started the first game, struggled from the beginning of the series, being kicked out early, and later lost by 2–4 by 2 points in both the second and third games. According to schedule, Kershaw was scheduled to start in Game 4, but had to swallow his disappointment due to the team’s loss.
Atlanta also showed a different performance from the regular season and was unable to avoid elimination. After losing 0–3 in the first game, they won the second game 5–4, but they were unable to withstand the opponent’s offense in a trip to Philadelphia and collapsed. In this way, all of the teams with the best regular season performance left the fall baseball stage.
Now all that’s left to get to the top is the Championship Series and World Series. First, the American League Championship Series between Texas and Houston will begin on the 16th. Games 1 and 2 will be held at Minute Maid Park, Houston’s home stadium, and games 3 through 5 will be held at Globe Life Field, Texas’ home stadium. If the series continues to games 6 and 7, the two teams will return to Minute Maid Park.
The American League Championship Series is attracting attention as a match between Bruce Bochy and Dusty Baker, two veteran managers representing the major leagues. It is also worth noting that Texas’ mound operation has been given the green light as the possibility of Max Scherzer, who left due to injury, is increasing. As there are more games than the previous series, Scherzer’s addition is expected to be a great addition to Texas.
The National League Championship Series between Arizona and Philadelphia begins on the 17th. Games 1 and 2 will be played at Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia’s home stadium, and games 3 to 5 will be played at Chase Field, Arizona’s home stadium. The venue for games 6 and 7 is Citizens Bank Park.
The World Series (WS, best of 7 games), in which the winning team of the American League Championship Series and the winning team of the National League Championship Series, will be held starting on the 28th.
