The Philadelphia Phillies pulled off a wild comeback in Game 2 of the NL Wild Card round against the Atlanta Braves, thanks to back-to-back home runs from Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper. Those two absolute bombs came off left-handed reliever Dylan Lee and tied the game at 3-3, sending it to extra innings. And get this: an Alec Bohm solo homer gave the Phillies the go-ahead run, sealing the deal for the win. Talk about keeping a season alive by the skin of your teeth!
A Comeback For the Ages, Powered by History
While the whole game was a rollercoaster, the real headline grabber for Schwarber and Harper, according to Jayson Stark of The Athletic, is that they just joined some serious MLB legends: Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. Seriously. We’re talking about a feat that almost defies belief. Stark, with backup from STATS Perform, dug into postseason history for any two left-handed hitters smacking back-to-back homers off a left-handed pitcher, no matter the score or inning. Guess how many times it had happened? Twice. Before Wednesday afternoon, only once.
Nearly a Century Later, History Repeats
Harper and Schwarber went deep to right field off Lee, tying the game in the eighth inning of an elimination game. The other time? Yep, Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, in Game 4 of the 1928 World Series, off Bill Sherdel. Think about that for a second: nearly 100 years. Ruth and Gehrig’s monstrous display was in the freakin’ World Series, but Schwarber and Harper’s heroics kept their team’s season from ending right then and there. These two are the Phillies’ best power hitters, batting back-to-back in the order, and they delivered exactly when their team needed it most. Sure, it’s a specific slice of MLB history, a little cherry-picked, but you cannot deny the gravity of an accomplishment that hasn’t been seen in almost a century.
What a moment for those guys, and what a way to keep their postseason hopes burning! That kind of clutch performance, especially when the season is on the line, just fuels the fire for what’s next. You gotta wonder if this historic blast will ignite something even bigger for the Phillies as they fight to keep advancing.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by The Sporting News.
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