Bohm’s tenth-inning homer keeps Phillies alive with 4-3 win over Braves

Alec Bohm hit a two-out home run in the tenth inning, and Andrew Painter finished three scoreless innings of relief as the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Atlanta Braves 4-3 on Wednesday at Truist Park. Philadelphia avoided elimination and tied the National League Wild Card Series at one game apiece, sending the best-of-three matchup to a deciding Game 3 on Thursday.

The Phillies had trailed 3-1 entering the eighth. Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper erased that deficit with consecutive solo homers off Dylan Lee, giving Philadelphia time to find one more run. Bohm supplied it against Didier Fuentes, driving a 357-foot homer to right field with two outs in the tenth.

Painter finishes the comeback

The winning swing still left Philadelphia three outs to get. Painter allowed a one-out single to Mauricio Dubón, struck out Austin Riley and then surrendered a single to Michael Harris II. Atlanta had the tying and winning runs aboard when Dominic Smith came up.

Painter’s 0-2 pitch was initially called a ball. The Phillies challenged the call through the automated ball-strike system, and the successful appeal changed it to a game-ending strikeout. Painter earned the win, allowing three hits and one walk while striking out three over his three innings. He threw 37 pitches, 25 for strikes.

Philadelphia used only three pitchers across the ten innings. Cristopher Sánchez went 6⅔ innings and Alex McFarlane recorded the last out of the seventh before Painter took over. The rookie’s relief work kept Atlanta scoreless after the Braves had put themselves six outs from advancing.

Two swings erase Atlanta’s lead

Harper drove in Trea Turner with a first-inning single to give the Phillies an early lead. Atlanta answered in its half when Matt Olson singled home Ronald Acuña Jr. The score remained 1-1 until the seventh, with both starters keeping their teams in position to win.

Drake Baldwin’s double to right scored Sean Murphy and gave Atlanta a 2-1 advantage. Harper misjudged the ball, which glanced off his glove, though the play was scored a hit rather than an error. Olson then added a sacrifice fly that brought home Ha-Seong Kim and made it 3-1.

Schwarber opened the eighth with a 447-foot homer. Harper followed with a 418-foot shot, turning the two-run deficit into a tie before Atlanta had recorded an out in the inning. Harper finished 2-for-5 with two RBIs; Bohm went 2-for-4 with a walk and the decisive homer.

Tyler Mahle had held Philadelphia to one run on six hits over seven innings, walking one and striking out six. Sánchez allowed three runs on six hits, walked five and struck out six on 116 pitches. The Phillies finished with 12 hits to Atlanta’s nine.

A deciding game, with an injury question

Philadelphia also lost Edmundo Sosa after his infield single to start the ninth. Derek Hill replaced him as a pinch-runner. The Associated Press reported that Sosa appeared to aggravate a leg injury; no Game 3 availability decision was established in that report.

The series now comes down to Thursday in Atlanta. The start time was still unsettled following Game 2 because it depended on which other Wild Card Series remained active. Philadelphia’s three late homers and Painter’s relief appearance secured that additional game after the Braves won Tuesday’s opener 5-3.