Phillies drop first series under interim manager Don Mattingly with 9-4 loss to Reds

Right away, José Alvarado knew it was gone. The Phillies reliever let out a shout of frustration on the mound as soon as the ball left Sal Stewart’s bat. Alvarado had brought Stewart to an 0-2 count, but then hung a cutter, and the Reds rookie promptly sent it to the second deck in left field for his fourth hit of the day. The Phillies trailed Cincinnati since the second inning on Wednesday, and, despite homers from Edmundo Sosa and Alec Bohm making things interesting, their bullpen couldn’t keep the game close. Stewart’s 441-foot two-run homer was the final blow in the Phillies’ 9-4 loss.

Phillies drop first series under interim manager Don Mattingly with 9-4 loss to Reds. Right away, José Alvarado knew it was gone. The Phillies reliever let out a shout of frustration on the mound as soon as the ball left Sal Stewart’s bat. Alvarado had brought Stewart to an 0-2 count, but then hung a cutter, and the Reds rookie promptly sent it to the second deck in left field for his fourth hit of the day. The Phillies trailed Cincinnati since the second inning on Wednesday, and, despite homers from Edmundo Sosa and Alec Bohm making things interesting, their bullpen couldn’t keep the game close. Stewart’s 441-foot two-run homer was the final blow in the Phillies’ 9-4 loss. The Phillies dropped their first series since Don Mattingly took over as interim manager. Starter Aaron Nola was tagged for four runs on eight hits. He tossed a 1-2-3...