Alec Bohm's 10th-inning homer lifts Phillies past Braves to force Game 3
The Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Atlanta Braves 4-3 in extra innings, with Alec Bohm delivering a walk-off home run to extend the National League Wild Card series to a decisive third game.
Philadelphia rallied in the eighth inning with consecutive home runs from Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper to erase a 3-1 deficit and tie the game. After a misplayed ball by Harper in right field gave Atlanta a brief lead, the Phillies responded in the 10th inning when Alec Bohm hit a 357-foot solo homer off right-hander Didier Fuentes, securing a 4-3 win and forcing a third game in the best-of-three series.
"I wasn't not trying to hit a homer, I can tell you that," Harper said after his earlier home run.
"I've been trying not to think about that. I really don't want the season to end," Bohm added, noting his free-agency status.
Starter Andrew Painter threw three scoreless innings in relief, striking out Dominic Smith to end the game. The win marked another postseason victory for Philadelphia over Atlanta, which previously beat the Braves in the 1993 NLCS and the 2022 and 2023 NLDS.
Both teams saw key moments in earlier innings: a double by Drake Baldwin that drove in a run for Atlanta, a sacrifice fly by Matt Olson, and a stolen-base sequence by Ronald Acuña Jr. that resulted in a run. Braves manager Walt Weiss praised the late home runs by the Phillies as a factor in the loss.
The series will continue Thursday with Braves pitcher Grant Holmes slated to start against Phillies ace Aaron Nola.