 against Braves starter Julio Teheran than any pitcher he's faced. He has gone deep seven times against Atlanta this year, more than any other Braves opponent.Teheran hit J. T. Realmuto with a pitch in the fourth before Harper took him deep to right-center, the slugger's 32nd homer, for a 2-1 lead. Harper has a .404 average in 47 career at-bats against Teheran.Eflin (9-12) gave up just an unearned run and five hits. He had not made it out of the fourth inning in any of his first three starts against Atlanta, allowing 20 runs - 12 earned - with 17 hits and nine walks in 9 1/3 innings.The Phillies led 4-1 in the sixth after Cesar Hernandez hit his 12th homer off Teheran, and Jean Segura drew a bases-loaded walk from Luke Jackson. Teheran (10-10) allowed three hits and four runs - three earned - in five-plus innings.Jose Alvarez faced the minimum in the eighth, and Hector Neris earned his second save of the series and 28th in 34 chances with a perfect ninth.ERRANT WORKPoor fielding hurt Philadelphia in the second. Hernandez, the second baseman, made a throwing error for the second straight inning, and Adam Haseley let a liner bounce off his glove in left field, allowing Joyce to reach and advancing Nick Markakis to third. Brian McCann grounded into a fielder's choice for a 1-0 Atlanta lead.STREAK ENDSThe Braves, who wrapped up a playoff spot last weekend, have lost a multigame series for the first time in their last 16. They were 11-0-4 since July 23-24 and had the majors' longest streak this season without a series loss. Houston went 13 straight from May 4 to June 14.OPEN LINEAs the regular season winds down, Phillies manager Gabe Kapler and general manager Matt Klentak are meeting with players individually to remind them that the team can still make the postseason and to let them voice any concerns.''This is less what Matt and I are saying to the players and more about giving them an opportunity to share anything on their minds,'' Kapler said.Kapler and Klentak are calling players into Kapler's office on a daily basis. Veteran outfielder Jay Bruce emerged from a long powwow before Wednesday's game.''We're just having casual, open, organic discussions,'' Kapler said. ''We're going to talk to as many guys as we can get to, again, with no set schedule.'' UP NEXTPhillies: RHP Aaron Nola (12-5, 3.62 ERA) has won three of five starts but has a 4.06 ERA against the Braves this year.Braves: RHP Mike Soroka (12-4, 2.57 ERA) has the third-lowest ERA in the majors, but a 4.82 mark in two starts against Philadelphia this year.---More MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/-Sports)
Phils face Braves, hope to keep playoff hopes aliveFLMOne of two trends could end Wednesday when the Atlanta Braves host the Philadelphia Phillies in the second game of their three-game series. Both starting pitchers are looking for their first win of the season against the opposition.The matchup features Atlanta veteran Julio Teheran (10-9, 3.50 ERA) against Philadelphia's Zach Eflin (8-12, 4.20).In Eflin's three starts against the Braves this season, the right-hander is 0-3 with an 11.57 ERA. He has allowed 20 runs, 12 earned, in 9 1/3 innings.Eflin's last start came against the Braves on Sept. 11 in Philadelphia. He left after 3 2/3 innings, having allowed three runs -- all unearned -- on three hits, three walks and five strikeouts.In six career starts against the Braves, Eflin has fared better. He is 2-3 with a 4.45 ERA. Until this season, he had allowed only four runs in 23 innings against Atlanta.Teheran has been likewise unsuccessful against the Phillies. The right-hander is 0-2 with an 8.00 ERA in two starts against the Phillies this season. His most recent start came against the Phillies on Sept. 12 and he allowed five runs in four innings.That was a bump in the road for Teheran, who had put together four consecutive strong starts. In his four previous starts, he was 3-0 and had allowed three runs over 25 innings, a 1.08 ERA.Teheran has a solid record in his career against the Phillies. He is 9-8 with a 3.92 ERA in 25 career appearances, 24 starts. His last win against Philadelphia came on April 16, 2018, when he was on the good end of a 2-1 victory.Philadelphia's path to the playoffs isn't easy. The Phillies have 10 games remaining on the current road trip -- two more games in Atlanta, three in Cleveland and five in Washington -- before they finish at home with a three-game series against Miami."From here on out, it's like Game 7 of a playoff series every time we play a baseball game," Philadelphia manager Gabe Kapler said. "Tough or not, challenge or not, it's our job. It's the only choice we have." Atlanta (93-59) has a nine-game lead over the Nationals in the NL East and a magic number of three to clinch the division.Philadelphia (77-72) is four games behind the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers in the chase for the second wild-card spot.The Braves are optimistic they may get center fielder Ender Inciarte back from the injured list before the season ends. Inciarte has been out since Aug. 16 with a right hamstring injury. The Braves hope to activate Inciarte before next week's two-game series in Kansas City."It's just a time-consuming recovery because he screwed it up pretty bad," Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said. "He is feeling better. All the reports are good. But what he does in drills is a lot different than taxing it and playing in games." The Phillies, however, got bad news. Corey Dickerson has a broken left foot. He sustained the injury on Sept. 4, but played through Sept. 11.--Field Level Media
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