PHILADELPHIA — Just like the song by Jersey’s own Jon Bon Jovi says, the Phillies are halfway there. Yet, it feels like the National League Championship Series is just about over.
Philly continues to kill the ball and its opponents, and if this keeps up, it’s hard to see anyone stopping them, much less the Diamondbacks, the No. 6 and final seed in the National League playoffs.
Say what you want about the upstart D-backs, but they earned their way here, sweeping their first two series, including the last one over the 100-win-a-year rival Dodgers. But now here stand the Snakes, in obvious danger of being swept out of the NLCS themselves after only two games — two games that turned into displays of impressive Phillies power and pitching.
If this keeps up, this could go quick. The Phillies — winners by a 10-0 score Tuesday to make it two-to-zip in games — keep hitting baseballs into the bleachers, setting long-standing records and threatening to end this quicker than you can say Schwarbombs.
Their division rival Braves were supposed to be the ones with the most power, and indeed, they tied the all-time regular-season record for home runs. But once the postseason started, the Phillies began pounding teams into submission. The latest victim, the surprising Diamondbacks, are a fun and feisty bunch. But at the moment, they look overmatched.
It isn’t their fault. This is all about the Phillies, who keep playing pepper with fans in the bleachers here at Citizens Bank Park, the loudest place surely in at least Pennsylvania.
They have out-homered opponents 19-4 in this postseason and continue to set obscure long-ball records — most home runs over a four-game postseason span, biggest home-run differential over an eight-game span, etc. — while quite possibly squashing the confidence of the upstart Diamondbacks. Arizona is young and solid but may just be in over its heads at the moment against these Broad Street Bombers (sorry Flyers fans, couldn’t resist).
Kyle Schwarber, the most powerful leadoff hitter ever (not counting Aaron Judge’s record-setting run last year when the Yankees needed to get him as many at-bats as possible), was the hitting hero of the day. He smacked two homers. That’s the guy who’s supposedly slumping, by the way.
Trea Turner also hit one, and it’s all forgotten he started the season in a half-year slump. Turner’s homer started the scoring in the first. But the Phillies just kept hitting in what seemed like overkill with longtime rotation star Aaron Nola (six shutout innings, three hits, no walks, seven strikeouts) dealing and keeping the D-backs down.
“We all want to hit,” Turner said. “We’re not scared to swing the bat as a team.”
This is a team that not only isn’t craven but features several players who seem to crave the big moment. Turner, a homer machine in the World Baseball Classic, fits right in in his first year in Philly.
He joined Nick Castellanos and Bryce Harper with an OPS over 1.400 this postseason heading into the game. That’s Barry Bonds territory, for three guys no less.
Harper is no surprise. His postseason exploits are just carrying over from his days in Washington, and his overall October numbers are edging toward a couple all-time greats. He’s fifth in lifetime postseason OPS, behind Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth, George Brett and Carlos Beltran.
Castellanos is another guy with no fear. He and Harper used to team up together in the Junior Olympics, and they continue to make quite the power of confident sluggers.
Castellanos earlier set a record with back-to-back multi-homer games. It’s one record after another for these guys.
“We all know what we’re going to get out of him,” Harper said. “I’ve seen it since we were 15, 16, 17 years old. He has come through in so many big spots. It’s just big moment, big spots.”
The spot could not be bigger, and the Phillies could not be playing much better. Harper made a diving stop of a Corbin Carroll grounder, and Alec Bohm threw Gabriel Moreno out from his knees at third. Not that Nola, whose uncharacteristically average regular season has given way to utter mound dominance in October, needs much help.
The D-backs’ two aces — Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly — who both have Philly roots (Gallen is from South Jersey while Kelly spent part of his youth in the city) allowed all six homers here, which may be disheartening.
Really, it’s just a continuation of Philly’s first two series in which they bludgeoned two division rivals, including the Braves, who dominated the NL East before the Phillies eliminated them a second straight season. It’s like the Phillies picked up the persona of their archrivals.
“We’re not up there to walk,” Turner said. “We’re up there to hit.”
This Phillies team feels right for the moment. It feels like their moment.