No Phillies game today.
Normally that sentence is a small tragedy. Today it's a mercy. Because last night the Dodgers hung a 9-5 on us in the rubber match, took the series, and left town while the bullpen was still looking for the baseball Tommy Edman hit.
So today we breathe. We hydrate. We touch grass. And tomorrow the Yankees walk into the Bank for the biggest home weekend of the summer.
About Last Night (Briefly, Because It's an Off Day)
For four innings, this one had juice. Bohm launched a two-run homer in the first — the man is quietly having a genuine All-Star-caliber summer and nobody's allowed to boo him until at least Labor Day. Then Bryan De La Cruz, in his FIRST GAME as a Phillie, tied it up with a solo shot. New guy homers in his debut at the Bank? Instant folk hero eligibility. Welcome aboard, Bryan. The jersey printer is warming up.
And then the parts of this game we're not dwelling on:
Nola gave up five over five and a third, and the four-seamer keeps getting sent places four-seamers should not go. Then the eighth inning happened — Tommy Edman cleared the bases with a three-run triple and turned a tight game into a final score that looks like a football result.
That's it. That's the recap. It's an off day and dwelling is bad for the liver.
The bigger picture: we just went toe-to-toe for three games with the best team in baseball and lost the series by a couple of innings' worth of bullpen. That's not nothing. It's also not good enough for October, which is exactly why the deadline drinking guide exists. Eleven days until August 3. Dombrowski, the city is watching.
Now for the Fun Part: The Yankees Are Coming
Friday night, the Bronx rolls into South Philly for three, and I need you to understand what kind of weekend this is going to be.
Friday, 6:45 — Luzardo vs. Will Warren. Luzardo's 9-4 with a 3.43 and strikes out everybody. It's on Apple TV+, so start your free trial now and set a reminder to cancel it Monday. This is a time-honored Philadelphia tradition.
Saturday, 6:05 — back on regular TV like civilized people.
Sunday, 7:20 — Cristopher Sánchez, national TV, Sunday night baseball. Sánchez is 12-4 with a 2.71 and has quietly been one of the best pitchers in the sport all year. The whole country gets to find out what we already know. Tell your out-of-town friends to watch. Be smug about it. You're from here — it's allowed.
The matchup within the matchup: Schwarber against that short porch-built Yankees lineup — Ben Rice is slugging .590 and Bellinger's still doing Bellinger things. This series is going to be homers, beers, and 45,000 people booing anything in pinstripes. Baseball as it was intended.
And listen — Yankees fans travel. There will be interlopers in the building all weekend. The Bank needs to be LOUD and it needs to be red. This is a home-field-advantage-is-a-group-project situation.
Your Off-Day Assignment
Three things:
One: rest. Real October-caliber fandom is a marathon.
Two: figure out your weekend plan. Going to a game? A bar? Somebody's roof deck in South Philly? Lock it in today, because Sunday night against the Yankees on national TV is not a "we'll figure it out" event.
Three: dress accordingly. If there's ever a weekend to not be the person in a gray hoodie while the whole section's in red, it's this one. The baseball collection is stocked, new drops keep coming, and nothing says "welcome to Philadelphia" to a traveling Yankees fan like a shirt they have to read twice.
Oh, and while you're resting: Eagles camp opens in five days. Emotional multitasking season is officially here.
Go Phils. See you Friday. Bring the noise.
