LOS ANGELES _ Cesar Hernandez settled under a sky-high pop-up on Monday night, waited for the first out of the eighth inning to fall into his glove, and then watched as an inning fell apart.
The inning's first out was instead lost somewhere in the lights above Dodger Stadium. It fell out of Hernandez's reach, bounced away from the Phillies second baseman and onto the grass to start the spiraling of a 5-4 loss to the Dodgers.
The crowd, knowing the game was shifting away from the Phillies, became unhinged. There are few ballparks louder than Dodger Stadium when the hometown is rallying. Max Muncy followed Kike Hernandez, who reached on Hernandez's error, by tying the game on a sharp grounder that rocked off the glove off pitcher Adam Morgan. Yasmani Grandal drove in the go-ahead run with a single through the infield.
This was a gut punch and it opened a 10-game road trip that will take the Phillies from here to San Francisco and then Chicago. It is quite the barometer to learn if the Phillies excellent start to the season is sustainable. And Monday night was the type of loss that could be challenging to overcome.
The eighth inning spoiled an impressive night from Seranthony Dominguez, who quieted the crowd in the sixth inning when they were first whipped into a frenzy. He retired all four batters he faced and struck out the side in the seventh to hand the ball to Luis Garcia in the eighth. Garcia lased just two batters.
Vince Velasquez allowed two runs on three hits in 5 2/3 innings. He didn't allow a hit until the sixth. Velasquez was strong. But none of that mattered when the bullpen broke down.
It was the second time in three days that a Phillies pitcher flirted with a no-hitter after Aaron Nola carried one on Saturday into the seventh inning. It was Velasquez' second career start at Dodger Stadium, the ballpark he grew up just 30 miles from.
Velasquez protected the four-run lead he was spotted thanks in part to Cesar Hernandez' three-run homer in the second. The Phillies loaded the bases and scored a run in the first without recording a hit. Rhys Hoskins, who reached on a catcher's interference after appearing to ground out, scored from third on a wild pitch. Hoskins left the game in the ninth after being hit in the face by his own foul tip.
Animal from The Muppets appeared on the scoreboard in the sixth inning, pumped up the crowd, and screamed Justin Tuner's name after Tuner singled in a run to chase Velasquez. The iconic ballpark had been quiet for most of Monday night. But now the fans _ with a crazed, pink-haired drumming muppet as their guide _ were rocking and the Phils' two-run lead suddenly felt dangerously thin.
The scene was a hornets nest. And for the Phillies, that could mean just one thing: enter Dominguez. The rookie reliever _ who Gabe Kapler has reserved for the game's most crucial spots � silenced Animal, extinguished the hornets nest, and handed the night to the rest of the bullpen.
This looked to be his night as the big-rally was silenced, but instead the real frenzy was just getting started.
