PHILADELPHIA _ Nick Pivetta, mouth agape, looked out to center field Saturday night and shot his arms in the air. Jorge Alfaro, dejected a moment earlier, lifted his catcher's helmet and applauded. The fans at Citizens Bank Park sounded stunned before supplying an ovation.
It took a moment for everyone to realize what just happened, or even how it happened. Odubel Herrera reached into the bushes in the third inning of a 4-1 loss to the Braves and came out with one of the best catches of the year.
Herrera raced to the center-field wall as he tracked Freddie Freeman's deep fly ball. Herrera reached the wall and ran out of room. He scaled the fence, reached back his glove and brought back the would-be home run. Herrera's glove broke through the branches of the hedges that sit just past the wall. The glove disappeared in the bush and knocked off some leaves after Herrera yanked it free. It was 411 feet out. Herrera threw the ball to second base, listened to the applause, and smiled.
The Phillies provided little threat Saturday and Herrera's defense provided all the thrills. Pivetta allowed four runs in five innings. The team's lone run came on a solo homer by Maikel Franco with the Phillies already down by four. And they played the final four innings without J.P. Crawford, who left with a strained right elbow.
The Braves tagged Pivetta for six hits, including a second-inning homer by Nick Markakis that was a bit out of reach for Herrera. Pivetta walked three and struck out six. It was the third time this season that he faced the Braves. Edubray Ramos, Adam Morgan, Victor Arano, and Yacksel Rios combined for four scoreless innings of relief.
Franco's home run was his first since April 7. He went 2-for-4 and now has 10 hits in his last 30 at-bats. Pedro Florimon, who replaced Crawford, singled in the seventh to put two runners on before the rally ended with groundouts from Jorge Alfaro and Aaron Altherr. Cesar Hernandez and Carlos Santana reached in the eighth, but Herrera, Rhys Hoskins, and Nick Williams went down in order.
After Herrera threw the ball to the infield, the umpires decided they wanted to review the catch. Perhaps, they too, needed a moment to understand what happened. The replay flashed on the scoreboard and Herrera tilted his head to watch. The crowd's cheers grew louder and he smiled again. Home plate umpire Kerwin Danley raised his fist. It was an improbable out.
