The Atlanta Braves aren't the only ones with bullpen problems.
On Sunday, the Braves exposed the back end of the Diamondbacks' pitching lot, erupting for six runs in the ninth inning (three homers) and walking away with a 9-5 victory at Chase Field.
With the win, Atlanta (79-64) improved its lead in the National League East to 4 1/2 games; and with 19 outings left on the seasonal docket, it would take a monumental collapse for the Braves to blow the division title.
How big of a meltdown? Well, Atlanta's currently on pace for 89 victories. For Philly (74-68) to match that output, it would need a finishing kick of 15-5 to close the season ... which almost certainly won't happen, given the recent woeful numbers of the Phillies' 2 through 5 guys in the starting rotation (Jake Arrieta, Nick Pivetta, Zach Elfin, Vince Velasquez–cumulative ERA of 5.72 in the last 30 days).
Does that mean the Braves can let off the proverbial gas pedal anytime soon? Of course not. But with a magic number of 16, it's getting late rather early for the floundering Phillies, who have dropped 17 of their last 27 games.
Back to Sunday's exhilarating finish ...
With the Braves trailing 4-3 for their final at-bat, Tyler Flowers led things off with a seemingly innocuous single. Ozzie Albies then legged out an infield single ... setting the stage for quite possibly the biggest dinger of Ender Inciarte's career.
On the payoff pitch from reliever Brad Boxberger, Inciarte turned on a low-and-inside fastball, crushing the ball well beyond the right-center fence.
In fact, the only drama entailed whether the ball would hit one of the biggest staples of Chase Field–the swimming pool that opposing teams love to raid when clinching a playoff berth.
But the damage didn't stop there. Two batters later, Lucas Duda air-mailed a solo shot to right field; and then after Ronald Acuna Jr.'s full-hustle triple ... Johan Camargo unloaded on a ball that flirted with the second deck of the ballpark.
In a flash, Atlanta had converted a once-tense affair into a laugher; and as their reward, the Braves are one victory in San Francisco from clinching a winning record for this West Coast swing.
And the way the Phillies are playing these days ... the Braves may be untouchable, in terms of NL East supremacy, by simply holding serve (read: .500 ball) from this point forward.
