In Game 1 of the NLCS, the Phillies were propelled to a 5-3 victory over the Diamondbacks with strong performances from Harper, Schwarber, and Castellanos.

On his 31st birthday, Bryce Harper hit the first pitch he saw into the seats, Kyle Schwarber hit his first postseason home run, and Nick Castellanos also hit a home run to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 5-3 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks in Game 1 of the NL Championship Series on Monday night.

Harper raised three fingers on his left hand and one on his right, mimicking blowing out candles on a cake as he reached the plate. Harper, who also achieved a walk, scored two times and drove in two runs. He hit his 10th home run in two postseasons while playing for the Phillies.

Zack Wheeler’s impressive performance of striking out eight batters in six innings contributed to the victory of the reigning National League champions in their seventh Game 1 of the past two postseasons. In the first two innings alone, Wheeler managed to break two bats, resulting in the Diamondbacks having more broken pieces of wood than hits after five innings.

José Alvarado successfully recorded four crucial outs using only 15 pitches, while Craig Kimbrel secured a scoreless ninth inning to earn the save.

After achieving five consecutive victories against the Brewers and Dodgers, Arizona faced their first defeat of the postseason.

The Diamondbacks were just the most recent team to succumb to the overwhelming support of 45,396 enthusiastic fans at Citizens Bank Park, waving towels and cheering with excitement. The Phillies continuously kept the momentum going, not allowing the fans to quiet down or giving Arizona an opportunity to recover until it was too late.

Schwarber initiated the home run derby by hitting Zac Gallen’s initial pitch 420 feet into the seats in right field. There was a slight concern that Schwarber, who has hit 47 home runs this season and 93 in the past two seasons, had not hit any home runs in the first six playoff games. It was easy to overlook the fact that Schwarber did not hit any home runs in the Wild Card Series or NLDS last season, but then went on to hit six in the NLCS and World Series. Therefore, it is possible that Schwarber’s impressive home runs are just beginning.

Harper hit a home run after four pitches – marking the initial occasion in 127 postseason games where Philadelphia managed to hit two home runs in the first inning.

When Castellanos lined his fifth homer of the playoffs in the third – all in the past three games – it gave the Phillies 32 home runs in 13 postseason games at Citizens Bank Park over the last two years.

Travis Kelce, the tight end for the Chiefs, and Jason Kelce, the center for the Eagles, enthusiastically celebrated together. Travis acknowledged his brother while Jason enjoyed a beer in their suite, without the presence of their celebrity friend Taylor Swift.

Gallen, a South Jersey native, had his name derisively drawn out to “Galll-ennnn” by Phillies fans each time the 17-game winner got into a jam. Too many times, for Arizona.

In the third inning, Trea Turner successfully hit a double, resulting in first base being unoccupied. Instead of intentionally walking him, Gallen chose to pitch to Harper, which proved to be a mistake as Harper hit an RBI single, extending the lead to 4-0.

In the fifth inning, J.T. Realmuto contributed with a single that resulted in an RBI.

The runs scored by the Phillies were extremely important. In the fifth inning, Geraldo Perdomo hit a home run off Wheeler, resulting in two runs and increasing the score to 5-2.

In the seventh inning, Seranthony Domínguez made a mistake while throwing the ball, resulting in the Diamondbacks giving up a run that was not earned. Alvarado successfully retired pinch-hitter Emmanuel Rivera with a groundout, maintaining the score at 5-3. He then pitched a scoreless eighth inning.

COLD DIAMONDBACKS

The Diamondbacks, who secured a playoff spot as the final NL team with a record of 84-78, were limited to only four hits.

GOING DEEP

Schwarber’s fourth leadoff homer in the postseason moved him past Jimmy Rollins and Derek Jeter for most in baseball history.

Harper joined St. Louis’ Kolten Wong, Tampa Bay’s Evan Longoria and Kansas City’s Willie Aikens as the only players in postseason history to homer on his birthday.

Castellanos’ five homers in his last three postseason game – he hit two in consecutive games against Atlanta – made him the second player to hit those marks. New York Yankees slugger Reggie Jackson did it in the 1977 World Series.

UP NEXT

For Game 2, Arizona will have RHP Merrill Kelly (with a postseason record of 1-0 and an ERA of 0.00) pitching.

Philadelphia Phillies’ pitcher Aaron Nola, who has a postseason record of 2-0 and an ERA of 1.42, will be taking the mound. Nola will become a free agent after the World Series as he decided to postpone contract extension discussions with the team during spring training. In the current year, Nola earned $16 million through the club option included in his four-year, $45 million contract signed before the 2019 season. Despite this, Nola expressed his desire to remain with the Phillies.

“I have high hopes. Truly,” Nola expressed prior to the game. “I have a deep affection for this place. Clearly, it’s the sole location I’ve known. I experienced significant moments during the rebuilding phase and had the privilege of being involved with diverse teams.”