Brandon Marsh had a chance to help the Philadelphia Phillies build momentum late Tuesday night, but one mistake quickly turned into a moment he wished he could have back.
The Phillies were already fighting from behind against the Houston Astros when Marsh stepped to the plate in the seventh inning. His RBI double pulled Philadelphia closer, but the celebration did not last long.
MORE:
Marsh made a costly baserunning mistake on the next play, and the Phillies ultimately fell 6-5 to Houston.
With Marsh standing on second, J.T. Realmuto sent a sharp line drive toward the infield. Marsh broke toward third before realizing Houston shortstop Jeremy Peña had a chance to make the catch.
Peña made a diving grab and doubled Marsh off second, ending the inning and taking away a potential opportunity for Philadelphia to continue its comeback.
Marsh did not try to shift blame afterward. Speaking to reporters, he took full responsibility for the mistake, according to NBC Sports Philadelphia’s John Clark.
“That’s on me. No excuse. I was wrong,” Marsh said. “It was a big mistake. I have to clean that up and I have to be better.”
The error came during a difficult night for Philadelphia. Andrew Painter allowed five earned runs over five innings as Houston built an early 5-0 advantage.
The Phillies fought their way back, but another baserunning mistake hurt them in the ninth. Edmundo Sosa doubled off the wall for an RBI but stopped at second while believing he had hit a home run.
Philadelphia could not complete the comeback and dropped to 81-63. The loss also moved the Phillies 4 games behind the Atlanta Braves in the NL East.
Marsh has otherwise provided solid production this season. He entered the game hitting .267 with 17 home runs and 58 RBIs across 139 games.
That made his postgame response even more notable. Marsh understands the margin for error becomes smaller with October approaching.
The Phillies still control their postseason path, but Tuesday showed how quickly one decision can change a game. Marsh knows he will need to make better ones when the stakes get even higher.