Back to the Philadelphia Phillies Newsfeed

Ian Kennedy got the job done Saturday with the help of some analytics

Saturday’s ninth inning between the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park began as a comfortable five-run lead in favor of the home team.

Fifteen minutes later, Ian Kennedy had some work to do.

Joe Girardi and J.T. Realmuto meet during a pitching change during Saturday’s win against New York. (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire)

Back-to-back-to-back home runs had knocked Mauricio Llovera out of the game and forced Joe Girardi to turn to his newly acquired closer. Kennedy had promptly allowed a single and a walk sandwiched around a foul pop-up to bring the go-ahead run to the plate with one out.