Phillies' ninth-inning rally stuns Cardinals in NLWC Game 1
The St. Louis Cardinals held a 2-0 advantage over the Philadelphia Phillies heading into the ninth inning, sitting just three outs away from taking a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three wildcard series.
It seemed like the perfect scenario. After all, the St. Louis Cardinals were 93-0 all-time in the postseason when leading by two or more runs through eight innings.
Only, no one told the Phillies that stat.
After being held to just two hits on the day, the Phillies' offense rallied with one out in the ninth, scoring six runs to take the lead and stun the Busch Stadium crowd.
The Phillies' six-run explosion is the most ever by a team trailing in the ninth inning in baseball playoff history.
The Phillies chased Cardinals' closer Ryan Helsley, who gave up four earned runs in the inning after allowing just six earned runs from July through September.
Fittingly, Jean Segura posted the game-winning hit for the Phillies. Before Friday, Segura had played the most career games of any active Major Leaguer without appearing in the postseason. With the Cardinals still leading 2-1 and the bases loaded, Segura drove a 2-2 pitch under the glove of second baseman Brendan Donovan, platting two runs.
The Phillies now look to finish an improbable sweep of the favored Cardinals in Game 2, scheduled for an 8:07 p.m. start on Saturday night.
Aaron Nola will take the mound for the Phillies, while Miles Mikolas starts for the Cardinals, who hope to keep their season alive.
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